Converging Paths
by MasterHamsters
Summary: A nerdy bookworm, an apex jock, a lonely heiress, and a labeled delinquent that ties the four together. It's senior year at Beacon High School and four girls have their paths converge, going from strangers to the best of friends. Through the trials of high school and the tribulations of war outside the borders, the four become one cohesive family. AU (White Rose) (Bumblebee)
1. On Stranger Tides

**Welcome everyone to my latest story: Converging Paths! I don't know how, but I managed to think of this while planning through White Like Roses. Honestly, much of my inspiration was taken from the amazing fanart I see throughout Tumblr and Deviantart, so thank you inspiring artists. So through my impassioned loins (I promise to never say that again), I created a planning file containing all my ideas for the entire plot of the story! True, there are still a few empty spaces, but I planned so much out that I can write quite a lot of chapters before going back to the drawing board. In fact, I'm already halfway done with chapter two but it's getting so long I'm considering splitting it in half. I thought I'd post the first chapter now to see where it gets me. Also, wowsers, this first chapter alone is more than 4,000 words. That may be unimpressive compared to most people, but it's amazing for me considering most of what I do is about 2,000 tops.**

 **So, since this story is an AU, let me give you a few reminders before you start reading:  
1\. None of the main characters fully retain their canon personalities. Blake is shy, Ruby is rather aggressive, etc. I wanted to use this as a starting point for their eventual development throughout the story.**

 **2\. Ruby and Yang have no familial relationship. They are not sisters and they do not know each other yet. Instead, Ruby has a different dad and a brother.**

 **3\. This AU may look like a high school AU on the surface, but it's far more than that. The story will be told in multiple arcs, each with a different character perspective or perspectives. And don't worry, there will not be an arc completely dedicated to Jaune.**

 **4\. This will be a White Rose and Bumblebee story. How I will manage to develop them is up to me, but it's gonna get rather bumpy.**

 **So yeah, that's all you really need to know before reading chapter one. Thanks for taking your time reading this rather lengthy author's note and I hope you enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and created by Monty Oum. Thank god I don't own it because I'd butcher it so bad just to make my ships happen.**

* * *

01\. On Stranger Tides (Blake)

The bright summer light shined down upon Blake Belladonna's face, glistening her light olive complexion but thankfully not causing any glare on her glasses. It wasn't a particularly hot day, but it did feel like anyone would rather go outside than stay cooped up indoors. Of course, today being the first day of school, no one really had a choice in the matter. Groans and complaints flew across the room as new seniors wanted the day to end before it even started.

Sighing, the raven-haired girl continued making pencil strokes on her sketchpad. Blake was not the sort of person who was fond of outdoor play. She was the girl who was more likely to be seen reading a good novel or creating a sketch for future use. She was really fond of her bow too, so she would never risk losing it to the vast unknown.

Blake was thankful that she sat in the back of the classroom and near the window. Normally, she would see that as a typical cliché in anime or manga for the main protagonist, but she was glad she didn't stick out like a sore thumb. If this year was going to be anything like last year, Blake could look forward to minimal social contact, artistic inspiration from the outside, and easy hiding space for her sketches from any prying eyes.

It wasn't that Blake didn't want to make friends. She would just… rather keep to herself.

The rustle and bustle of the students calmed down when their homeroom teacher called for them to sit down in their seats. Luckily, Blake managed to sneak in a few more lines on her sketch before she quickly closed the book and put it in her bag.

After affirming her presence when the teacher called for attendance, Blake adjusted her frame as her eyes wandered around the room. Fortunately, her name was early enough in the rollcall so that she could observe who will be her classmates for the next year. She preferred doing this early on in the year so she could determine who she should avoid or at least categorize them from most tolerable to least.

Scanning the room, she saw that her old classmates Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos were sitting side by side near the front. Funnily enough, Jaune wanted to be as close to the wall as possible to avoid getting picked to answer the questions – Blake knew how he worked – while Pyrrha wanted to sit as close to the teacher's desk as possible. The two were so different yet so compatible.

Similar to Blake, Jaune was very socially awkward. She never heard the full details, but Blake knew that Jaune often took social advice from his parents. His mother gave rather sound advice when it came to making friends, but his father… not so much. He also felt rather intimidated being the only boy in a family of eight children, so asking out girls was not one of his few skills he had.

Enter Pyrrha Nikos, the academic and athletic prodigy from Mistral. She had it all. Looks, smarts, leadership skills. Everything anyone would ever need to achieve high social status in a school environment. Boys often clamored over her while others don't even try because they put her on such a high pedestal. However, for reasons unknown, she had taken a liking to Jaune and they became friends over the course of high school.

Blake had no qualms about the scraggly blond and the prodigal red-head. They were nice people as far as she could tell from the few encounters they have had for the past three years.

Behind them were the two inseparable childhood friends – Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. The girl looked like she was egging her companion on about breakfast or something of the sort. It was strange to many of the students, Blake included, how the two managed to stay together for so long, especially considering polar opposite personalities. No one knew how it happened but it soon spread that the two were dating.

Ren was the mellow quiet type. Often times, nothing ever seemed to faze him in the slightest but that was most likely due to having the most hyperactive girl in all of Remnant as a childhood companion. Despite that, he was quite the intellectual and was appointed captain of the kendo club this year.

Nora, on the other hand, practically stole all the energy Ren ever possessed in his lifetime. She was a strange one. She had boundless amounts of enthusiasm and an ironic love of sloths that it was easy to forget that she was actually the star of Beacon's weightlifting team. Nora was a nice girl, but Blake noted to avoid conversations with her assuming that she could even get a word in.

From the looks of it, the infamous bully group of Cardin Winchester, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark were nowhere to be found. Blake was grateful for that. If she had to hear them say anything idiotic once more for the next year, she would have to tear her ears off.

Around the middle of classroom, Blake could see two people that made her heart nearly stop beating. Hopelessness snagged her heart and she sunk into her desk in exasperation. Of all the people, why did _they_ have to be in this class?

Of course, she was referring to the preppy heiress Weiss Schnee and local jock Yang Xiao Long. As if to show off their status, Weiss wore a cream sweater vest over a short sleeved white button-up shirt and plaid skirt while Yang wore her signature letterman jacket over a t-shirt and denim jeans.

Weiss… well, Blake honestly didn't have a problem with Weiss. As long as Blake had known her, she often kept to herself despite always expressing a want to meet new people. That certainly made her famous among the school populace. It felt contradictory to Blake why she would act in such a way, but it was difficult to understand the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company using a commoner's point of view. Her off-centered ponytail was also quite strange, but Blake couldn't judge when she herself wore a bow over her head.

No, what truly alluded her was the heiress's supposed best friend: Yang Xiao Long. Blake knew from personal experience to avoid this girl at all costs. Yang was the star of the Junior Varsity boxing team last year and was recently appointed to be the head captain of the Varsity team, so if anything, she could quite literally pack a punch. Her fearsome attitude and headstrong demeanor certainly made her a force to be reckoned with. But what made her truly terrifying was the fact that she's one of the school's most well-known bullies.

Even though it was expected of her, Yang rarely ever used brute force to harass students. No, she thought that was too easy. She'd rather use her words to break people down. If that didn't work, she would do things that would get on people's nerves, forcing them to retaliate.

Blake remembered her painful experiences involving the blonde boxer over the course of the years. Blake learned to ignore Yang whenever possible. Like it was often said, a bully couldn't do anything if you didn't give them the power to mess with you.

Unfortunately, the world wasn't some fairy tale.

Bullies would keep going after you, even if you don't give them a reaction. They always want to elicit a response because they want to be the one in power. Blake knew the feeling. Whenever Yang harassed her, she would always pull on her bow and run around with it if she could remove it from the tight knots Blake made to secure it around her head. It became painful, but after a while, Yang had given up on bothering her. She didn't know what made the boxing star to stop, but she was grateful.

Blake flinched at the memories, but felt a wave of relief remembering that they were over. She continued observing her surroundings. No one else in particular caught her eye and she returned her attention towards the front.

Assuming that Yang didn't bother her for the next year, it would be smooth sailing from her.

And of course, things couldn't be that easy.

With a loud burst, a young girl clumsily entered the classroom. At the speed she entered the room with, the girl nearly fell over but managed to recover ungracefully.

"Sorry, Miss Goodwitch! I got lost on the way here." With all eyes on her, the girl gave a sheepish look but her expression soon formed into a sharp glare, causing most of the students to cower in fear.

Miss Goodwitch gave an exasperated sigh. She knew that it was far too early to scold the girl so she ultimately decided to send her into the only empty seat available.

The empty seat next to Blake.

Still somewhat angered by her audience's staring, the girl begrudgingly took the seat. Something rang in Blake's heart that she was all too familiar with.

Fear. Or at least, something akin to it.

While the girl certainly did not look like a bully like Yang or Cardin, she did have a menacing look to her. One that did not demand respect, but at the same time, lamented the message that this girl was not someone you would want to mess with.

Her outfit was nothing special in the least; only a pair of partially ripped black jeans and a crimson red with tinges of black hoodie. She wore mismatched rose earrings, one being red and the other being white, and her glaring silver eyes were as sharp as daggers piercing into your very soul. But from the moment she noticed her hair, Blake knew who this girl was.

"Ruby Rose?" Miss Goodwitch called.

"Here," the girl called out nonchalantly.

This girl was Ruby Rose. A supposed genius in school as she was moved ahead a grade a while back due to excellent grades in various subjects. But that was not why Blake was scared. Rumors often spread in high school and the rumors about Ruby Rose were no different.

Her most notable feature was her unnatural looking hair. It was about shoulder length and its style was not anything to write home about. What _was_ worth noting was its color. From the top was jet black that cascaded downward to a red tint towards the tips of her hair. Some claimed that she dyed her hair to assert dominance over lower life forms. Others believed that her locks were infused with the blood of biker gangs she often beat singlehandedly. But there was one thing everyone agreed on.

Ruby Rose was the most notorious delinquent of Beacon High School.

Blake knew better than to believe silly tall tales about someone, but she couldn't help but feel anxious around the younger girl. Even before she moved up a grade, the older kids avoided her like the plague. There was something about her, about her _aura_ , which gave the impression that this was not a girl to be trifled with.

"What's the matter with you?"

Ruby's curt tone broke Blake out of her trance, causing her to realize that she had been staring at the black-and-red haired girl for a good few minutes. Flushing at the epiphany, Blake looked back towards the chalkboard in the front in embarrassment.

"N-Nothing! I'm sorry!" Blake choked out in a meep. Ruby stared at her quizzically, before shrugging and deciding not to press further on with the matter. She averted her attention to her own backpack and took out a sheet of notebook paper and a pencil.

Still shaking from the encounter, Blake squirmed to get out her sketchbook. In times of emotional turmoil, she often relied on drawing to calm her nerves.

This was going to be a long day after all.

* * *

With her first classes of the day over, Blake was on her lunch period. It was a nice day outside – the sun was shining, there was a comfortable breeze in the air, and the cafeteria was far too crowded for her liking. As a result, she elected to eat in the courtyard.

The courtyard was the main hub of the school, so to speak. It was directly connected to the bus loop outside the gates and it lead to the two main buildings of the school, one housing the hallways for the performing arts and electives, the cafeteria, and the gym and auditorium, and the other containing the main core classes such as literature and science. Two large trees stood tall closer to the core class building with benches surrounding them in four directions. Over the years, the school courtyard went through quite a bit of construction, having installed a large awning parallel to the trees, a miniature amphitheater towards the back, and a small three-layered fountain smack dab in the middle.

Blake reflected on the past few class periods since the day started.

Miss Goodwitch was her homeroom and first period teacher, instructing in Art History. She was a very by the books sort of teacher, but Blake loved art enough to enjoy the subject regardless. Miss Goodwitch also had quite the enthusiasm for the job despite her promptness that it wouldn't have matter whether or not Blake appreciated art or not.

Next was Mister Oobleck, teaching World History. The man was far too hyper for his own good. Everyone could tell that he would be a handful by the looks of his half-tucked dress shirt and the five empty mugs of coffee and four large cans of energy drinks. Blake remembered her old senior friend Velvet Scarlatina warning her about him.

Finally was Mister Port, the boisterous and self-absorbed Biology teacher. Granted it being the first day of school, Blake was still bored out of her mind in that class. The large mustached man often talked more about his old exploits in the military and his achievements as a professional boxer back in his day. Looking around, it seemed only Yang Xiao Long was interested at all. Even the academic stars Weiss Schnee and Pyrrha Nikos were struggling to keep awake. And Ruby didn't even bother hiding the fact since she spent half of the class writing on her notebook paper and the other half sleeping, using her hoodie as a makeshift pillow.

Overall, Blake didn't know what to make of her early senior experience. Sighing, she sat down on one of the many tables littered throughout the courtyard, opened her lunchbox, and took out a book to read. When it came to her respite, Blake preferred to read than to draw. She loved the work she does in her sketchbook, but she felt like that would be better reserved for when she wanted to pretend she was paying attention in class.

Of course, she also couldn't forget the tuna sandwich she packed.

"Ooh~ What do we got here? Still wearing that old bow of yours, Blakey?" a familiar voice taunted mockingly. "Aren't you a little too old for that?"

Turning towards the source of the voice, Blake attempted to keep a nonchalant attitude and a flat expression. She should have known that the unspoken ceasefire would not have lasted that long. "What do you want, Yang?"

The blonde sneered. Funnily enough, the presence of her lackies Cardin, Russel, Dove, and Sky were all absent. For some strange reason, the blonde had decided to harass Blake alone.

"Why can't I go up to my best bud and ask her how she's been without my motives being questioned?"

"As far as I'm aware, we've never been friends, Yang."

"Oh, don't be like that!" Yang grinned and waved her hand around in exaggeration. "You know I just like messin' with ya!"

"You made fun of me by equating my appearance to a cat for the past three years. You even pulled on my bow even though you knew it was tied tightly around my head."

"It's all in jest, I swea-"

"I heard enough."

Stepping in between the two girls, a third shorter girl glared silver daggers at Yang. The moment they saw the blur of black mixed with crimson, they knew.

Ruby Rose was defending Blake Belladonna from school bully Yang Xiao Long.

"And what's with you, you little punk?" Yang scowled, incredibly ticked off that someone had the gall to oppose her.

"I can't stand people like you." Ruby said brazenly. "You feign friendship just so you can hurt others. If I didn't know any better, I'd say _you're_ the punk around here."

Blake and Ruby could practically feel the temperature in the air beginning to rise as they watched the blonde searing in annoyance and irritation. If Blake didn't know any better, she could have sworn that the birds instantly roasted in the presence of heat and that Yang's eyes strangely changed from its standard lilac to fiery red.

"What did you say, you brat?" Yang hissed, cracking her knuckles.

"You heard me." Ruby smirked, knowing she pushed the blonde beyond her limits using words alone.

"Oh, I can't _wait_ to wipe that look off your face!"

Using quite a bit of force, Yang balled her fist and threw a swing towards Ruby's head. The younger girl quickly dodged the strike with a side step and launched a quick jab at Yang's stomach. Luckily, Blake backed up before fists were exchanged, but she saw that Ruby's strike was enough to knock the wind out of Yang.

Eyes turning into slits, Yang spat out the built up saliva and readied an offensive stance. She charged in, throwing punch after punch at the notorious delinquent, but each blow was skillfully dodged as if Ruby could predict where each hit was going to land.

Once her frustration kicked in, Yang decided to throw forceful haymakers and hooks into the mix. "Stand… still… you… little… brat!" She lurched forward with every pause she took, strengthening her blows, but ultimately only hitting air.

Ruby continued to confidently dance around each attack, going for quicker strikes every time the opportunity presented itself. However, before she knew it, Ruby lost her balance due to the uneven flooring of the courtyard. Seizing the newly found chance with a smirk, Yang covered the distance between her and her opponent and delivered a firm strike on Ruby's stomach, right where the younger girl had hit her earlier. Blake had suspected that the attack had sent shockwaves through Ruby's body as she was shaking when she hit the concrete.

Yang grabbed Ruby by her hoodie and glared her down. "Not so tough now, are ya?"

"What is the meaning of this?!"

Approaching the three girls was Miss Goodwitch. As noted by her expression, she was _not_ happy with what she was seeing. Without any of them noticing, a crowd of students had formed around the two fighters as the bout took place. Many of them were encouraging the violence by chanting, while others looked concerned for both parties. Out of the people they knew, Weiss facepalmed, and Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ren attempted to calm the students down. Nora, well, she was ecstatic over the extravagant display between the two combatants.

Miss Goodwitch assessed the situation. There were two girls who were clearly trading blows as indicated by the multiple cuts and bruises, and there was Blake, a girl who had witnessed the brawl from a safe distance, albeit closer than the crowd.

Glaring, Miss Goodwitch pointed at Ruby and Yang. "You two. Principal's office. Now."

With both girls' feet on the ground, they looked down dejectedly. "Yes, ma'am."

* * *

She didn't know why, but Blake had a compelling feeling to follow the teacher and her two classmates. She knew Yang all throughout high school, but she remembered that Ruby had only transferred about a year ago. She didn't know the younger girl and something about her intrigued Blake. Something interesting.

Standing outside of Principal Ozpin's office, Blake couldn't help but listen to the conversation. She could hear Miss Goodwitch pacing back and forth and speaking in an exasperated tone. Principal Ozpin, however, spoke much more calmly and leniently.

"Honestly, not even halfway through the first day of school and you two already got into a fight?! Kids these days…"

"She started it!" Yang yelled.

"You were harassing a girl in front of everyone!" Ruby countered.

Miss Goodwitch slammed her hand onto the desk. "Quiet! Both of you!"

"Come now, Glynda," Ozpin chuckled. "I'm sure Miss Rose and Miss Xiao Long were just venting their frustrations and pent up energy from over the summer. The first day always seem to be the most stressful for students."

"That doesn't excuse making a commotion in the courtyard during school hours." Miss Goodwitch retorted. "And even if that was the case, there are much healthier ways to relieve stress."

Blake couldn't see it, but she imagined Principal Ozpin lowering his head in defeat. "I suppose so. Besides, I suppose I cannot leave you two without some sort of repercussion. That would make for a bad example. Since it's the first day, you'll leave with Saturday detention." He then switched to a more ominous tone. "Don't expect us to be so generous next time, girls. This is your only warning."

"Y-Yes, sir."

Ruby and Yang exited the office, Yang with clear irritation and Ruby with a rather blank look on her face. The frustration Yang felt was even more evident when she pushed the crimsonette outside the doorframe upon crossing. Hunched over, Ruby sent a glare in Yang's direction, who was stomping off to her next class.

Once fully composed, Ruby began a lazy stroll to her next class, but was interrupted by Blake's nervous voice. _Now's my chance!_

"U-Um, excuse me?"

"Hmm?" Ruby turned back towards Blake, who was sitting on the bench in front of the principal's office for the past few minutes. Her expression looked very uninterested, but Blake knew it held no malice or any form of annoyance. "Oh, it's you."

"U-Uh, Ruby, right?"

"Yeah?"

"M-My name is Blake Belladonna."

The younger girl cocked her head and raised her eyebrow, analyzing the nervous wreck that was unfolding in front of her. It took her a couple of seconds before finally registering Blake.

"Oh yeah, you're the girl who sits next to me in Goodwitch's class." And just like that, Blake probably became the first person in all of Beacon to witness Ruby soften her expression to a tender smile. "Sorry about earlier. I, uh, I don't like bullies. Getting into fights with people like them was the reason why I transferred to Beacon from Signal a couple years back. I didn't think we'd get into a fist fight in front of you."

Seeing Ruby this way calmed Blake down a tad, seeing that the supposed delinquent was just as human as she was. In response, Blake shook her head. "It's quite alright. In fact, I'm grateful. Not many people would stand up for me, much less stand up against the infamous Yang Xiao Long."

"That's a shame," Ruby lamented. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's fine. But thank you for your concern. And thank you for defending me." Blake gave a small bow, which caused Ruby to look away and blush a small amount.

"No problem, I guess. I'm just lucky that I had no plans this Saturday. Though telling my mom that might cause some issues…"

Blake chuckled at the comment and offered out her hand. "It was nice meeting you, Ruby. You're quite the interesting character."

Ruby scratched the back of her head in confusion but ultimately accepted the raven-haired girl's friendly gesture. "I'm not really sure if I should take that as a compliment or not, but likewise, Blake."

The two parted ways, leaving on a somewhat happy note. Thinking about the past few hours on her first hectic day of school, Blake could not help but smile.

This year may prove itself to be an interesting one after all.

* * *

 **Oh man, it was so difficult to write Yang like that. She's so precious and I ended up making her the bad guy... But fret not! Even the bullies go through character development, right?**

 **So yeah, I decided to begin with developing a Ladybug friendship before anything else. I think, out of how I planned on using the three other girls, Ruby would bond with Blake the most. And originally during planning, I found it difficult putting Blake into the story because the plot revolves more around Ruby and her family.**

 **So thank you for reading this far! I'm really excited to tackle this project so please leave any reviews you may have or just comment on how I'm doing things!**


	2. Perplexing Friendships

**Wow, I was actually quite surprised how well this AU was taken. Sure, I did turn off a few people with the changed personalities, but I honestly expected that. But hey, remember that these first few chapters are still being told from Blake's shy point of view. That's why her name is in the chapter.**

 **To the anon reviewer, I will think about what you said. I unfortunately was making Ruby look like a Mary Sue, so I revised a few paragraphs in the beginning to explain why I described her as I did. Not that you're going to read this, but I thought I'd point that out. However, there is a part in this chapter that Ruby does have a super smart moment, but it's for the sake of exposition and plot.**

 **I completely forgot to mention last chapter that there are no Faunus in this world. That may or may not play a part in the future.**

 **So about this chapter. It was supposed to be the end of this first arc. However, I made it much longer than I thought it would be so I split it in half. And now the second part is almost 6,000 words long. Wowsers. I'm almost done there, so enjoy this bit for now.**

* * *

02\. Perplexing Friendships (Blake)

Nearly two weeks passed since the fateful meeting between Ruby Rose and Blake Belladonna. For the past few days, the two often met up in their free time to converse. It was never anything too in-depth however. Blake still barely knew Ruby as a person as conversations tend to stick to school subjects such as classes and supplies, but something about the crimsonette still intrigued Blake.

It had nothing to do with her looks or personality. In fact, Blake learned that Ruby was a very down-to-earth girl. Her grades were decently good aside from a few mishaps in literature and a few specific sciences. They didn't manage to touch Weiss's top scoring grades, but they were good nonetheless. She was little disorganized if anything, but nowhere near have what the rumors made her out to be. Sure, Ruby's glare still scared her to an extent, but her expression only contorted as such when she was irritated or sleep deprived. In fact, the girl was actually quite sweet almost to a literal extent, offering her cookies and strawberries during lunch.

If Blake was to assign her an anime archetype, Ruby would be classified as the misunderstood punk.

Thankfully, Ruby did debunk most of the rumors Blake had heard over the years. She had only skipped kindergarten, going straight to the first grade (meaning the kids from Signal made this rumor up as a scare tactic). Her black and red hair was actually natural; her mom had the same hair color and highlights before she completely changed it to black. And there were no biker gangs that she defeated singlehandedly. She just beat a neighborhood bully once and he exaggerated her strength, making her infamous among the community.

However, this still didn't mean Blake fully comprehended Ruby's character. Blake knew that the enigmatic girl was much more than she let on, but she couldn't quite place her finger on it

Before she knew it, the second Friday of the school year would come near its end. It was Mister Oobleck's class – or Doctor Oobleck as they found out he'd rather be known as – and what Blake could understand from his quick-paced speech was that he was having a one-sided discussion with class on the subject of the military.

While most of the class groaned at the thought of having to learn about generals and various battles, but Ruby visibly perked up. Not enough to look incredibly excited, but it did make her alert and kept her head off the desk.

"…As you can see, the Hunting Corps is a very vital part of the military and played a great part in Remnant's history. While vastly different from your everyday soldier, they assist in various combat deployments outside of the unified kingdoms and often help civilians with missions assigned to them despite the controversy that has plagued them for quite some time now."

Interestingly enough, Jaune Arc of all people raised his hand.

"Ah, Mister Arc. It's rare to see you actually participating in class. What is your question?"

"Um, well, I was wondering…" Jaune began awkwardly. "What's the difference between the huntsmen and huntresses and the standard military?"

"Excellent question!" After taking another swig of his coffee, Doctor Oobleck darted his head around the classroom. "Would anyone like to answer Mister Arc?"

Yang obnoxiously snorted, probably from a joke she made to herself or how absurd the question was.

"Miss Xiao Long! You must be paying attention if such an inquiry can elicit that sort of response. So answer this: what _is_ the difference between members of the Hunting Corps and standard military soldiers?"

She scoffed and waved her hand in indifference. "Well, obviously they're vultures. All they care about is filling their pockets with everyone's hard earned lien and waste precious Dust resources while doing so. They put the actual hardworking soldiers out of a job due their higher military ranking and priority. And if they're called in for military missions, they're forced to drop any jobs they currently have and leave their clients to fend for themselves. In reality, they're just dogs of the military."

"That's ironic, coming from you." Ruby uninterestingly deadpanned. The blonde scowled and the rest of the class turned their heads to look at her, shocked to see that not only did the girl speak up in class for the first time in two weeks, but her first words were challenging _the_ Yang Xiao Long. Of course, this held little surprise for Blake since she had already witnessed a physical scuffle between the two firsthand, but she was quite astonished that Ruby would defend this particular subject.

"My, looks like today is full of surprises. Would you like join the discussion as well, Miss Rose?"

"Actually, I do." Ruby sat up in her chair, straightening her back and pushing her chair into her desk. She let out a breath, preparing herself for what appeared to be a mouthful, and shot a small glare towards Yang.

"The Hunting Corps was established many decades ago, during the Great War of Unity. Around that time, Remnant was ravaged by creatures known as Grimm, fabled beasts that took on many different various animal forms. Today, they are often romanticized in the form of merchandise and mascots, like the Beacon Beowolves. Prior to the Great War, the four kingdoms often fought amongst each other for trade routes and the like through skirmishes or all-out war. This was the first time the kingdoms banded together to create a fighting force to fend off the Grimm, hence the 'Great War of Unity'. This fighting force was the Hunting Corps."

Many of the senior students were in awe, if not a little scared, of Ruby and her sudden blast of historical information. Doctor Oobleck looked impressed as well and even Yang bothered listening to her. Blake wondered how much of this subject Ruby actually knew considering she remembered her saying that history wasn't exactly a strong point for hers.

"That's correct, Miss Rose! Anything else to add?"

Ruby nodded and continued.

"The Great War was around the time humans first discovered Dust, our main form of energy propellant in our modern age. While huntsmen and huntresses were very valued for their skills in battle, they were more known about their applications of Dust. They learned and taught how to use Dust to a tactical advantage, such as weaving it into clothing, infusing it into their weapons, and more daring ones implant it into their own bodies. Modern scientists later figured out a more practical way of using Dust to improve the public's everyday lives like using it as opposed to fossil fuels to power machinery, for example. Huntsmen and huntresses are assigned to squads of four during and after training and eventually earn titles and aliases according to how they apply themselves.

"Like _Yang_ ," Ruby growled the name to emphasize her malice towards the blonde, "said, huntsmen and huntresses travel around the world acting as mercenary groups to improve the lives of the people around them. They take on jobs where they act as escorts, bodyguards, or even fend off bandits from small villages. While it is true that some members may be only interested in earning money, most still retain moral obligation to help people in need. The first main controversy of the Hunting Corps is that they still utilize Dust, a finite resource, as a weapon of war and combat. Normal soldiers are only allowed to use Dust bullets, where the Dust's power is easily contained and expelled. Huntsmen and huntresses are specially trained to use Dust in the same creative ways the original Hunting Corps members did. As such, once their training is complete, they earn the military rank equivalent of Major and go up from there. The second controversy of the Hunting Corps is that they often pilfer weapons from enemies they've killed in combat. The most common belief is that they use the weapons they take to create a monopoly of power within the military, but it's actually used as a symbol."

Ruby paused. "Where ever they go, they must carry their burdens with them. Nowadays, they continue to operate in squads and independent of military control until they're called upon for specific missions. Mainly ranging from espionage or dealing with terrorists."

The classroom stood still in silence. Even Blake had trouble processing the information that was just given to her. Coming from someone who read and watched countless complicated plot twists throughout her childhood and adolescent years that was quite a feat. Doctor Oobleck even had to put down his coffee mug to slowly applaud Ruby. However, Blake could faintly hear Yang fake cough, "nerd".

"Very well done, Miss Rose. Might I ask where you learned not only the history but also the inner workings of the Hunting Corps? Most college classes don't even divulge in those topics."

Ruby let out a light pant, exhausted from her own miniature lecture she just gave the class. "I learned from my brother. He's a huntsman."

"Ah, yes. Mister… Argent Rose, was it? I haven't seen him for a good five, six years. He was a good kid. Shame that he lost that spark of his towards graduation. I've heard that he's made quite the name for himself in the Hunting Corps, though."

It was faint, but Blake sensed Weiss's body tense and fists clench at the mention of Ruby's brother. Even Ren looked to be on edge. Blake remembered hearing the name Argent Rose before. Mostly rumors, however. What she did know was that he was co-captain of the fencing club alongside Winter Schnee, Weiss's sister and valedictorian of their year. Another one of his friends included Altair Branwen, captain of the archery club and, from what she heard, his cousin. His grades were never top-notch, but Blake heard from countless teachers that he was a good person. But then they always follow with the same thing.

Somewhere along the lines, Argent changed right before graduation. He became increasingly moody and refused to talk to anyone besides Winter and Altair, effectively making him infamous in Beacon history. After the graduation ceremony, he immediately signed up to be a huntsman. Five years later and barely anyone knew the reason why he changed so drastically. If Ruby's brother managed to be this way, what did that spell out for the girl herself?

Before she knew it, the class bell rang, breaking Blake from her thoughts.

"Oh look at the time! Class dismissed! Don't forget to read the assigned pages over the weekend. We'll discuss them in class on Monday."

Exhaling sighs of relief, the students gathered their belongings and promptly left the room. As per usual, Yang had the audacity to push Ruby out of the way when she passed through, causing the younger girl to send her signature silvery scowl in her direction.

"That was amazing, Ruby." Blake complimented, coming up from behind. "That sounded like a lot to retain in your head. Didn't you say you were bad at history?"

Ruby's expression softened seeing Blake stare in admiration. Her expression contorted to a rare, goofy smile as she scratched the back of her head in embarrassment, a far cry from what Blake knew about her two weeks ago. "Oh, it was nothing. I usually remember everything that's interesting to me, anyway."

The way she worded that visibly distressed Blake. Clutching her books a little tighter, she asked, "Ruby… Do you want to be a… huntress?"

Ruby frowned and her eyes widened, genuinely surprised that Blake would ask her that. "Well, not really. Huntsmen and huntresses do fascinate me though. I heard so much about them in the books I used to read as a kid and knowing my brother is one of them feels like he's a hero to look up to, you know?"

Blake, giving out a silent sigh of relief, smiled. "I guess we all have our heroes, whether they're fictional or not."

"Yeah. Well, I'm gonna walk home. You wanna come with?" Ruby offered.

Blake shook her head. "Sorry, but Miss Goodwitch asked me to help her with something as soon as school ended. Maybe next time?"

Ruby shrugged, not very bothered by Blake's declination. "Alright. See you later then, Blake."

With a short wave, the two girls exchanged their goodbyes. Part of Blake felt grateful for the past hour, glad that she managed to learn more about the enigmatic girl she more or less befriended on the first day of school. But she knew she had to get going.

Miss Goodwitch did not like to be kept waiting.

* * *

Blake sighed in relief. Miss Goodwitch had called her in to help her reorganize the desks, set up the classroom set of textbooks, and put up some of the art posters around the room. Why she didn't ask someone more reliable like Pyrrha, Blake could only suspect. But after that ordeal, she just wanted to relax.

Looking up at the sky, she could tell it was getting late. The clouds melding with its surroundings, becoming a bright orange due to the sunset in the horizon. The streets were not as crowded, signaling that mostly everyone has gone back home or stayed to work late tonight before the weekend.

Blake always loved taking this route home. Granted, it was a bit longer than the recommended route, but she preferred the more tranquil environments. Sometimes, after school, she would go to the park just so she can read under some shade on a nice day. She'd even watch the kids mess around on the playground from time to time.

Off in the distance, Blake heard a distinct giggle. Listening more closely, it felt like it was coming from the park. It sounded awfully familiar to her, leading the girl to investigate further. As she approach the giggle's source, it began to sound like laughter full of merriment. It sounded like a girl's voice. A girl Blake was beginning to think she was getting far too involved with.

"Ruby? Is that you?"

When the aforementioned girl heard her name, she snapped her head to look up at Blake. The crimsonette was lying down on her stomach, facing the holed dome with a rather large bag beside her. Based on its condition, Blake surmised the bag was recently bought and opened.

"Oh, uh, hey Blake." Ruby laughed nervously. "Goodwitch really made stay late, didn't she?"

"Yeah… What are you doing out so late? I thought you were going straight home?"

"Well, you see, about that…"

Blake noticed that Ruby had her hands cupped in front of her, preventing her from using any sort of body language. As if her current position didn't already speak volumes.

"Why don't you come see yourself?"

The raven-haired girl groaned. She was tired, but she knew it would be rude to decline Ruby's offer a second time in the same day. They had just become friends, after all. Blake dragged herself to Ruby's location, feeling several blisters from the uneven ground of the mulch, and knelt down to see what Ruby was holding.

She could see that she was holding a handful of several brown pellets, cupped in a bowl shape. But seeing what was eating the brown pellets made the pain in Blake's feet completely melt away.

"A stray cat?"

Not just any cat. A black cat with golden eyes. It was almost as if Blake was looking into a mirror if she was a feline creature.

"Yeah. Some of the kids were playing with him when I passed by after school." Ruby explained. "Of course, most their parents still believe in superstitions, so they were told to back off. Didn't really help that I was around them either."

Ruby handed Blake the bag of cat food beside her and stood up to stretch her numb legs. "Glad to know the kids aren't as scared of me as their parents are. They asked me if I could take care of him until I can find him a good home. The most I could do was buy some cat food since my apartment doesn't allow pets other than fish."

"Well, I could take him in." Blake offered. "My parents and I were looking into getting a pet. Besides, he sorta looks like me, doesn't he?"

"He kinda does." Ruby said after closer inspection. "You know, that bow you always wear kinda look like kitty ears."

Feeling an embarrassed warmth creep up to her cheeks, Blake pouted. "Thanks for making me realize I look like a cat."

The two girls shared a comfortable silence, watching the young cat eat more pellets off of Blake's hands. Once it was full, he bounced around in excitement and playfulness as if this was the first meal he had since birth. Minutes passed by before Blake spoke up.

"So does he have a name?"

"Not that I know of," Ruby made her thinking face, her eyes staring blankly upwards, arms crossed, and tongue sticking out. "What about Shroud? Sounds pretty cool, don't you think?"

"Sounds like a name you'd give a dog, honestly."

Ruby sheepishly scratched the back of her head. "Yeah, I'm more of a dog person personally. So what do you think?"

Blake eyed the feline. Seeing the creature play around the dome was a delight to see and his boundless energy might be just what Blake needed at home. Inspiration was scarce lately, so perhaps this was the perfect opportunity. "I'll call him Gambol."

"Gamble? You're naming him after the addictive activity my uncle practically invented?"

"Not 'Gamble', silly. Gambol. It means running or jumping around playfully. This little one seems to be all about that."

"Huh. I guess that fits. Well, he's yours now, so I can't really complain."

"That settles it. Welcome to the Belladonna family, Gambol!" Blake cooed excitedly, to which the cat replied with a gentle purr and an affectionate face rub.

"Oh man, it's getting really late now." Ruby exclaimed, realizing the street lamps were on and the orange sky was replaced with a dark one full of stars. "Mom's gonna kill me!"

"I should get back too. Thank you, Ruby. For letting me keep Gambol here."

"Hmm? Oh no biggie. Oh, that reminds me. I was gonna ask you this after school got out, but I totally forgot. Do you want to hang out at my place tomorrow? We could finish Oobleck's readings faster and relax afterwards."

To say Blake was a bit overwhelmed would be an understatement. First she gets a new cat and now this. It was rare enough that Blake had friends at all. Even less so that they'd invite her to their house so soon after meeting her. Blake did give off the introverted vibe, so she suspected that they never invited her so she could keep to herself. She was actually quite curious how Ruby of all people would handle guests with her loner reputation.

"Sure, I'm not that busy tomorrow. But why do you want me to come over?"

"Well, I sorta told my mom about you. She knows how hard it is for me to make friends, especially with the nasty rumors going on about me, so she was ecstatic to hear I met you." Ruby's pale cheeks reddened in embarrassment.

Blake giggled at the younger girl's expense. "Alright, see you tomorrow then. Text me your address and I'll be there."

* * *

 **So yeah, a bit of a shorter one, but here I indirectly introduce two new characters (who I will not go into until they officially appear in the story) and I build up a bit of the world with the Hunting Corps. And yes, I based the Hunting Corps a lot off of the State Alchemists from Fullmetal Alchemist. I thought I could spice things up from your regular old high school AU, so I went this route.**

 **The next chapter is almost done so I may hold off on it for a consistent weekly update and proceed starting the next arc. Thank you for reading and please leave a review!**


	3. Let it Out

**Oh boy, pretty late update from me. Sorry guys, finals are coming up and I'm remodeling the house and Xenoblade Chronicles X came out, so I almost missed out on this weekly update. However, that means I'm sorta behind on the next chapter too so I think I'll take the next week off before I upload anymore to Converging Paths. Good thing too since this is the last chapter of this specific arc.**

 **Anyway, in this chapter I'm introducing a motif I'll be using throughout the series: music lyrics. I'll avoid using them too often since the website does have laws against extensive use of copyrighted music and I don't want the meat of the story to drowned in endless song lyrics. In addition, I got an even longer chapter here for you guys, being a whopping 6,502 words. That's enough for a really good one-shot.**

 **And if anyone could give me any advice in describing women's clothing, that'd be great. I can't name most of them to save my life.**

 **Disclaimer: RWBY is as usual owned by Rooster Teeth, _Let it Out_ is by Mihu Fukuhara and the English lyrics are by Adrisaurus**

* * *

03\. Let It Out (Blake)

Staring at the beige door that read 525, Blake would be the first to admit that she was nervous. Of course, considering she was visibly shaking, saying out loud that she was nervous would be a relatively moot point.

Blake had decided on a bit of a formal outfit today. A white sundress with an unbuttoned black blouse over it. Strapped around her shoulder was a handbag containing books and pencils she could use to occupy her time and she held her sketchbook under her free arm.

Finally swallowing her fears, Blake courageously rang the bell.

"Coming!" Blake heard a voice inside call. From what it sounded like, it was a woman. Most likely Ruby's mom.

The door almost immediately swung open, startling Blake. What greeted her was a beautiful woman who didn't look a day over twenty-five. Her hair was jet black and tied to a low ponytail, but it heavily contrasted with the white pearls she showed off with her massive grin.

"You must be Blake! It's nice to meet you. I'm Summer, Ruby's mom."

"I-It's nice to meet you, Miss Summer." Blake responded shakily.

"I'm sorry about the mess. It's been just the two of us and we actually have plans to move out soon, so we haven't taken care of the place for a while."

"It's no problem. Thank you for having me over."

"It's my pleasure, really. Ruby hasn't invited anyone over since middle school so it's nice to know she's making some friends. And a good looking one at that."

"Th-Thank you, ma'am." Blake blushed.

"Oh, please, come in!" Entering the apartment, Blake could see it was nothing spectacular, but comfortable in the very least. The front door lead right into the kitchen, which was nothing more than a fridge, standard counter top, various cabinets, and the stove and oven. Past that was the living room, containing a large couch and a coffee table with a variety of mechanic tools, pencils, paper, and empty water bottles as if it was used as both a workspace and an eating area. In the back was a sliding door leading to the patio. Across from the couch was a television set surrounded by multiple game consoles. It was surprisingly organized despite the multitude of wires sticking to every available outlet.

"If you're looking for Ruby, she's in her room. It's the last door down the hall on your left."

"Thank you, Miss Summer." Blake awkwardly bowed.

The older woman chuckled and waved her hand to tell Blake to drop the formalities. "Just Summer will do, my dear. Why don't you go see her while I get lunch ready? I promise I'll get out of your hair right after that."

"Thank you again, Mi-," Blake bit her tongue before correcting herself. "Summer."

Blake made her way down the hall, finding five doors. There was one left open at the end of the hall that indicated that that was the bathroom. Each door was decorated to fit each of its occupants aside from the first door on the left, which Summer said was the pantry. The bathroom door and the door on her immediate left had plaques hung on them with messages. The plaque on the bathroom door read somewhere along the lines of "Home is a place of rest", but the other one made Blake chuckle slightly.

It read "Why are these kids calling me Mom?" which told her that room belonged to Summer. Based on this and her first impressions of the woman, Blake could tell that she had quite the sense of humor. The other two doors had a variety of posters scattered about. Ruby's door had various posters of popular rock and pop bands as well of some of the classics. The door across held a variety of video game and movie related posters.

Blake hesitated in front of Ruby's door. Sweat built up in her palm as she extended her hand to knock on the door. How was she supposed to act? Blake never visited someone else's home before and now here she was in front of the bedroom of her new friend that wasn't quite the most likable of people around. Sure, they were both rather socially awkward people, but how would hanging out for a day really rectify that?

She let out a heavy sigh and knocked on the door.

"R-Ruby?"

A groan.

"Ruby?!"

With growing concern, Blake rushed into the room. Her worried expression was soon replaced with amused one once she laid eyes on her friend. Ruby was lying on the edge of her bed, arm and leg hanging off to the side. She was still wearing her pajamas which consisted of a black tank top with a wolf design, white pajama pants consisting of a rose pattern, and an eye mask (which, funnily enough, was still on her forehead rather than over her eyes).

"Ruby?" Blake shook the younger girl. "I'm here."

"Hmm? Blake…?" Ruby responded groggily. She sat up from her comfortable position and squinted in Blake's direction. The moment she got a better look, her eyes widened and red flashed across her cheeks.

"B-Blake! I'm so sorry!" Rushing over to her closet, Ruby grabbed a t-shirt and a pair of shorts. She managed to dress herself in such a blast of speed that would only be portrayed in a cartoon.

"I stayed up late last night playing video games, so I didn't have that much time to clean up," she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry 'bout that."

Blake examined the room. Frankly speaking, it was a mess. On the ground were various food wrappers and old clothes that she has worn a few days prior. Her night stand had lamp with a lopsided lamp shade and empty water bottles littered throughout. Even her closet was not safe from the disorder of a room seeing as it was stuffed with various childhood toys and stuffed animals.

But for a girl like Ruby, it was very simplistic. Her bed had no frame, being only a mattress with a collection of various colored pillows and a single blanket. There were two thin bookshelves on its side, holding a variety of video games, music CDs, and Blu-ray movies as well as a few figurines of various anime and superhero characters. A large window next to the night stand had multiple posters around it akin to the ones outside the crimsonette's door. A large oak work desk sat beside the front door, housing a multi-screen desktop computer. Adjacent to that was a keyboard piano.

"It's not that bad." Blake finally responded. "You should see my cousin's room. Half of the time, I can't tell if I'm standing on solid ground."

Ruby chuckled and proceeded to examine Blake's outfit. "You know, you didn't have to dress so nicely. You look like you're ready for a date."

"Well," Blake blushed. "It's sort of my first time at a friend's house. I wanted to make a good impression."

Jumping on her bed, Ruby relaxed and looked at Blake with one eye closed. "Well, it's just me and my mom. She's about to go to work, so there's no one to really impress. Next time, just wear whatever that works for you. We're real simple here in House Rose."

It was Blake's turn to laugh. "Is that so? I'll keep that in mind."

"You should save that for a real date though." Ruby smirked. "I'm sure there's a lucky someone out there who could be perfect for you."

Blake blushed even harder and whacked Ruby with a nearby pillow. "Weren't we here to do homework or are you going to keep stalling?"

"Okay, okay. Sheesh."

Hours passed. Blake successfully crammed a summary of the pages Doctor Oobleck assigned to them into Ruby's head, and they went to various other subjects. Fortunately for Blake, Ruby was more of a numbers girl, helping her in her math classes. Likewise, Blake assisted her friend in going over the literature and art history notes.

Once they finished, Ruby suggested that they watch a movie while eating lunch. They moved into the living room and reheated the shrink wrapped plates left in the kitchen by Summer. A folded note with small, but neat handwriting stood in front of the plates.

 _You two have fun now! Just put it in the microwave for two minutes each! -Mom_

Humorously enough, there was a small picture of Summer's head in the corner, winking and shooting out a peace sign with her hand.

Ruby had suggested they watch one of her personal favorites: _Iron Man_. Blake never got into the superhero craze that started a few years back, so she remained rather skeptical. But she didn't want to seem too demanding on her first free day with Ruby, thus proceeding to watch anyway. Thankfully, Ruby said that she had a similar experience with superhero movies until her brother introduced her to the franchise.

Several minutes into the film, Blake found herself rather engrossed. It certainly helped that Summer was also a great cook. The food laid out for them was nice and she enjoyed listening to Ruby nerd out to the movie as much as she usually does with her own obsessions.

Once the movie was over, Ruby took both her and Blake's plates to the sink. While she was washing the dishes, Blake decided to explore a little. Going over to a table with various pictures, she picked one up and gazed over it.

The picture looked like it was taken many years ago. It depicted a family of four, a large man with an exposed forehead and spiky blond hair that flowed into a ponytail, a beautiful woman with black hair holding a young girl with an oversized red cape, and an excited young boy with silver hair wearing a white cape of similar shape and size.

"Hey, Ruby. Is this your family?" Blake asked.

"Huh?" Ruby had just finished the dishes and approached Blake, eyeing the picture in her hands. "Yeah, that was taken about ten years ago, I think? You should recognize me and my mom. The guys are my dad and brother."

"Your brother has silver hair?"

"He dyed it back then." Ruby took the picture from Blake's hands and smiled at it. "When we were younger, the kids used to call me a freak because of my hair. Argent got so mad that he decided to completely dye his hair silver one day. Since then, it sorta stuck."

"He sounds like a great brother," Blake mused. "Where is he now?"

"Last time he called, he said he was doing a few missions in Vacuo. Shouldn't be too long now till he comes back for his break."

"That's nice. What about your dad?"

Ruby's face molded to a somber expression. She placed the picture back on the table and sighed. "He passed away five years ago. Killed in the line of duty. He was a huntsman too. The Golden Lion, they called him."

Blake was instantly filled with regret. Seeing Ruby look this depressed was a new sight of the girl that she did not enjoy. Was that the reason why she was who she was? Why she was always so distant at school? Why her brother became a huntsman in the first place? "I'm so sorry, Ruby. I shouldn't have asked…"

"It's fine," Ruby assured her. "You didn't know. If anything, his death made me realize what I truly wanted to become when I grow up."

"And what's that?"

Ruby moved towards the coffee table and pulled out various gadgets from underneath. The tools suddenly made sense to Blake.

"A mechanical engineer. Dad taught me a lot about engineering growing up. We used to build stuff all the time together. The coffee machine, homemade prosthetic limbs, and even Argent's alarm clock that slapped him every time he wouldn't wake up." Ruby chuckled at the memory. "After he died, Mister Schnee often came by to tutor me in engineering."

"Mister Schnee? You mean the CEO of the Schnee Dust Company?!" Blake exclaimed. "How do you know him?!"

"He never revealed it to the public, but he used to be a huntsman as well. He worked in the same squad as my dad and uncle before retiring. In fact, the Roses and the Schnees have been really close for generations. At least, that's what my dad said. We owe a lot to them."

"Then, do you know Weiss?"

"I've seen her a couple of times before transferring to Beacon." Ruby paused to think. "We barely talked though. After my brother's graduation, she would either only glare at me or ignore me flat out. Her sister is a good friend of my brother's, but she never gave me as much as a friendly glance.

"So what about you, Blake? What do you want to be after you get out of college?"

Blake was taken aback. Hardly did she share information about her future plans to anyone besides her parents. Even the school counselors had no clue. "M-Me? Well, it's nothing too ambitious…"

"Oh come on, how bad could it be? Oh! Let me guess… You always carry that sketchbook around with you, so are you planning on becoming an artist?"

"Well, something along those lines. I-I'd actually like to write books."

"A novelist, huh? That sounds fun." Ruby nodded, agreeing with herself. "Have you thought about doing comic books though?"

"Comics?" Blake raised her eyebrow. "Why is that?"

"Well, you can combine both your desire to write books and your art hobby together. Maybe write novels as your primary job and post comic strips online on the side. A lot of people make a living doing one or the other. Why not do both?"

"That's… certainly interesting." Blake contemplated Ruby's proposal. It sure sounded like a good idea. She never attempted to draw comics before but she has read quite a lot of manga to use as a base. "Let me try something."

On her sketchbook, Blake drew multiple rough panels on a single page. In each, she drew random characters with different facial expressions with speech bubbles for each. After writing the dialogue, she gave the rough draft to Ruby.

"What do you think?"

"Wow, are you sure this is your first time?" Ruby stared in awe of Blake's work.

"Yup. Sorry if the scene doesn't work so well."

"Well, that's a given considering you just made this on the fly. If you made each of these panels its own scene, then I think you can get yourself a good story. Can I look at your other stuff?"

"Sure, go right ahead." Blake smiled. Watching Ruby flip through the pages of her sketchbook like an excited fan was like her dad telling her that they were going to eat at her favorite sushi restaurant for dinner. Seeing Ruby in her actual home environment was liberating to say the least.

She turned towards the coffee table, going through the gadgets Ruby had laid out earlier. Below them were a couple sheets of paper that caught Blake's attention. She picked them up and read through them. On them was an ensemble of words grouped into stanzas with rhymes every few lines. Was this poetry?

"Ruby? What are these?" Blake asked, shaking the pages in her hand.

"Oh, those are- ack!" With a swift motion, Ruby snatched the sheets from Blake's hand and replaced them with her sketchbook. "D-Did you read them?"

"A little…" Blake answered awkwardly. "What are they?"

"Um… well… you see…" Ruby sighed. "You promise you won't laugh?"

"Promise."

"Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise."

"Super pinky-"

"Ruby."

"Okay, okay! Fine! My mom is a local music teacher. So… I… write songs as a hobby. I can also play a couple of instruments and sing."

"Is that what you were doing on the first day of school? That's nothing to be embarrassed about, Ruby. Sure, you don't look to be the type, but it certainly makes you more interesting."

"Well… that's not really the embarrassing part."

"Then what is?"

"I really got into music because… I had this childhood dream of… becoming a pop idol when I grew up. I… came up with a stage name and everything."

Silence.

A snicker. Two snickers. And then full blown laughter. Tears included. Blake honestly didn't know how else to react. On the first day of school two weeks ago, she had been absolutely afraid of this girl. Now, she knew one of her darkest secrets that she told her of her own volition.

"Blake!" Ruby whined. "You promised not to laugh!"

"I'm sorry but… snrk… It's just so… pft… unlike you!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

Finally composing herself, Blake fanned her flushed face. "I'm sorry, Ruby. I shouldn't have laughed. We all have those childhood dreams, didn't we?"

"Yeah, sure. Whatever." Ruby deadpanned, rather angry at Blake's overreaction.

"Hey, how about playing one of your songs? I'd like to hear one."

Ruby's face flushed, showing a rather irritated face before finally admitting defeat. "Fine."

She walked over a nearby keyboard piano and place the sheet above the keys. She popped her knuckles, began playing the keys, and singing along with the tune.

 _Let it all out, let it all out_

 _You don't have to think your heart is made of steel_

Blake was no expert in critiquing music, but she knew Ruby truly had a talent. Her fingers danced across the keyboard, playing the notes with perfect timing with her heavenly voice. It was well known that Weiss Schnee was a famous singer and Blake knew she was good too. But something about Ruby's singing voice felt more genuine yet more surreal.

 _Through pain and fear, or rain and tears,_

 _We will hold on to the light_

 _We'll chase the dawn that waits for us beyond the darkest sky_

 _Keeping following that distant star_

 _Never walk away from who you are_

 _Never forget that the promise of tomorrow lies in your heart_

Stopping at the chorus, Ruby stood up from her chair and curtsied with a bit of a mocking smile. Blake applauded her, appreciating the treat that had just played for her ears.

"That was amazing, Ruby! Bravo!"

Ruby blushed out of embarrassment and scratched the back of her head. "Thanks, Blake. I wrote this song for my brother. I thought he could use a bit of a pick-me-up."

"Oh? Can… Can you tell me more about your brother?"

"Well, I guess it can't hurt. Why not?"

The two girls sat back down on the couch, Ruby suddenly readopting her somber expression from earlier.

"You already know that Argent is a huntsman. He's a really great guy. He protected me when I was harassed by bullies, he played video games with me all the time, and he always took the blame whenever I got in trouble. But… he sort of snapped when Dad died."

"Snapped how?"

"Dad taught him everything he knows: fencing, battle tactics, you name it. He and my Uncle Qrow taught me the basics of self-defense when I was younger, but he and Argent did everything when it came to fencing and like. It was the first time I've seen him so passionate about something. His skills became well-known in high school, considering he was one of the best captains ever to be appointed on the team.

"After graduation, the first thing he did was sign up to be a huntsman. A few weeks beforehand, Mister Schnee came into our apartment. He told him and my mom that my dad was killed. By a member of the White Fang."

"The… White Fang? You mean those terrorists from Menagerie?"

"Yup, that's them. What made it worse was that his killer took one of his precious blades, the Crescent Rose. I've never seen Argent so angry. I know he tried to keep his emotions in check, especially around me. But he ultimately gave in. That's mainly why I want to become a mechanic. I want to do whatever I can to help to make his job easier." She paused. "He joined the Hunting Corps to look for leads to avenge Dad's death. To this day, he still won't tell me who killed him."

"I-I'm sorry, Ruby. I'm sorry I made you talk about that."

Ruby looked at Blake, but offered a small smile and a shake of her head. "You know, it's actually refreshing talking about it. It's much better than telling some therapist that's overcharging for useless results anyway. Thanks, Blake."

"Is that so? I'm glad to hear that. You're welcome." Glancing outside, Blake's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh wow, looks like we lost track of time. It's getting late."

Ruby looked at the clock, which read 7:45PM. "Oh man, you better get going. Gambol might get hungry."

"He sure can eat, that one." Blake laughed, gathering her things. She walked over to the front door, and looked back at Ruby. "Bye, Ruby. I'll see you on Monday."

"Yeah, see you then." Ruby said with a wave of her hand.

* * *

Over the course of the next couple of days, Ruby and Blake met up on a frequent basis. They'd go over to each other's homes, finish their homework, and then watch a movie while engaging in small talk conversations. It was fun. Blake was quite surprised, seeing how that she thought she'd rather stay away from social interaction not too long ago thinking it was too much of a hassle. Ruby of all people somehow showed her that it wasn't that hard at all.

While watching _The Incredible Hulk_ , the latest movie in Ruby's arsenal of superhero movies, a random thought came in Blake's mind.

"You know, Bruce Banner really reminds me of Yang."

Ruby interrupted her petting session with Gambol, who Blake had brought over to the Rose residence. "Hmm? Well, she has the angry part down."

Sometimes, Blake really felt bad for Yang. She had always wondered what culminated in her life to make her the person she was today. Teasing, manipulative, even violent when it came to some of her boxing matches. Had she had a small change in her perspective, Blake was sure she, Ruby, and herself could've been great friends.

"What if she has a soft side like Bruce does? Something that made her the way she is?"

Ruby scowled. "That's still no excuse to act like that. Bruce doesn't exactly have control over his powers, Blake. Unless some untimely revelation happens to her, I doubt she'd change so easily."

Blake looked down in defeat. "Oh…"

"What brought this up?

"It's nothing." Blake looked at the clock. "It's getting late. I should get going."

She called for Gambol to follow her and exchanged goodbyes with the crimsonette before leaving.

* * *

The twilight faded to black as Blake roamed the streets. The lingering light was snuffed out by the rapidly falling night, causing the sidewalks to light up from street lamps and the sky to illuminate with clusters of stars. Various automobiles drove through the roads, breaking the barrier of silence with their engines. Aside from the late night workers and drivers, the streets were practically void of human life. The moon was bright, but Blake knew that if she wasn't careful she would lose her way.

Luckily, the night chill was absent as it was still late summer. It would make the trek back home much less of an issue.

Blake's eyes wandered across the street. There she spotted the park where she ran into Ruby the week before, brightened with small lamps littered throughout. She smiled at the memory. Her parents were delighted when she introduced them to Gambol and he, in turn, became fond his new loving family.

She approached the crosswalk, readying herself to cross to the other side of the street. But before she could press the button, she noticed a splash – a mane, really – of familiar blonde hair. Of course, she knew those locks from anywhere.

Yang Xiao Long.

Fortunately, Yang didn't seem to notice her yet since she was listening to some rather loud music through a pair of headphones. Strangely enough, Blake was able to spot a somber expression on the blonde's face.

"Gambol, stand back," she told the cat. "We'll just wait for this one."

It had only been a few days, but Gambol had grown to become fiercely obedient. Just as he was commanded, he sat down, waiting for his owner's next course of action.

The crossing light changed to green, signaling the pedestrians to cross. Yang, being the only pedestrian, crossed absentmindedly. But Blake sensed something that Yang had not. The traffic lights were red, but something did not feel right. Cars had stopped in most of the lanes, leaving only one open.

The lane that had a broken traffic light, one that constantly shone green.

Blake panicked. Beyond the bright lights of the many cars, she could see a pair moving. And it was moving fast, eager to meet its destination.

"Yang! Look out!"

Blake immediately broke into a sprint. The car closed in at blistering speeds towards Yang, who had finally noticed. The blonde stood still in shock, not knowing how to react. The screeching made by the car's brakes were heard, but Blake, Yang, and the driver all knew that it was too late for comfort.

 _This can't be happening._

Blake allocated all her energy into her legs, giving herself a burst of speed. The car showed no signs of slowing down.

 _She doesn't deserve this._

She ran across the street, towards the blonde in the deep black. Yang froze in utter fear of her life.

"YANG!"

Fright held a firm grip on her, but she didn't care. With a desperate leap, Blake lunged forward, hugging Yang's entire body. The force of the jump sent the two girls flying into the concrete sidewalk, leaving a couple of bloody cuts and bruises. Blake laid on top of Yang, cradling the jock's body as a form of comfort. The cross light stayed green, allowing Gambol to safely cross the street and check up on his owner's recent stunt.

"Yang? Oh god, Yang, are you alright?!"

Yang looked at the raven-haired girl with a daze, trying to process the events that had recently unfolded.

"B-Blake?" She shook her head to break out of her trance. "It… It's you…"

"Answer the damn question!" Blake cried. "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine but… Why did you save me?"

"Because I wasn't about to let someone get run over by a car right in front of me!"

"Even… Even if that person was me?" Yang choked.

Blake sighed. This was hopeless. "Come on, get up. We should get these cuts cleaned before they get infected on the way home. I'll go get some peroxide from the convenience store. _You_ wait for me at the park. Understood?"

"But I-"

" _Understood?!_ " Blake raised her voice.

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Yang meeped.

Blake smirked. It was honestly quite amusing seeing the girl who has bullied her over the years be so docile to her authoritative tone. She signaled to Gambol to watch over Yang while she went to purchase a bottle of disinfectant and cotton from the nearby convenience store.

When she returned, Yang was sitting on the swing set, watching Gambol jump around her with a melancholic smile. When the blonde saw her approaching, a regretful frown creeped on her face.

"Blake, I-" Before she could even begin her sentence, Blake swiftly applied the burning solution on Yang's cuts. Yang yelped in surprise and glared at her companion.

"Oh, don't give me that look. What happened to 'pain just makes me stronger'?" Blake quipped.

Yang's glare softened and ultimately transformed to a defeated sigh. She gazed upwards at the shining stars and the milky moon with an expressionless stare.

"Why? Why did you save me?"

"I told you already. I didn't want you to die."

"But after all I've done to you, I-"

"Yang," Blake interrupted, starting to clean up her own wounds. "I'll be the first to admit, you're a terrible person. You're an infamous jock that uses her position and power to pick on others. Whether you're doing that as a show of strength, to feel better about yourself, or if you have domestic problems, I don't know."

Yang attempted to refute the accusation, but stayed silent. Blake knew that Yang knew that she was right.

"But that's all I know about you on the surface."

"Bring that by me again?" Yang asked, eyebrow arched.

"You… I think there might be more to you than you're letting on." Blake sat on the neighboring swing set and looked fixedly at Yang. "I, uh, watched this movie recently. It was about a guy who turned into a raging monster whenever he becomes stressed or overexcited. On the inside, he's all fluff."

"You mean like your little cat friend here?" Yang nodded her head in Gambol's direction. "Are you trying to say I'm sort of monster?"

"Perhaps that's a bit too harsh." Blake said regretfully.

"No. I… sorta understand what you mean." Blake looked at her questionably, wanting her to continue. "It actually goes back to the first day of school. When Ruby stood up for you."

"What does that have to do with it?"

"It showed me for the first time what sort of person I am. I'm popular, I'm strong, and my ex-girlfriend is still my best friend despite what we went through as a couple. I honestly thought I had it made but really I'm just a girl who just so happens to be popular because I can sock a guy twice my size in the jaw with a single blow. And here comes this girl who had the guts to stand up to me. A girl who is a year younger, no less." Yang sighed. "Sure, I became pissed that someone would even dare challenge my authority, but it really got me thinking for these past few weeks."

"Thinking about what?"

"Just how much of an ass I've been for the past few years. Not just to you, but to everyone. I'm not even sure how or why I ended up like this." She chuckled. "Listen to me rambling on. You must be abhorred that the girl who harassed you for so long doesn't even have a good enough reason to do it."

"I… I wouldn't say that, Yang. Everyone has an underlying reason why they act the way they do. Sometimes, you just have to… let it all out." Blake's eyes widened, remembering the song Ruby sang a week before. "You know, a good friend of mine told me that talking about something usually helps. Just… tell me whatever and maybe we can find out together."

Yang looked at Blake as if she was crazy, but eventually softened and complied regardless. She told her about her life before Beacon. Even before middle school. Her dad was a mixed martial artist and a really good one at that. He encouraged Yang to take many different forms of martial arts, ranging from karate to judo. When she started high school, she said she joined the boxing team since she preferred fighting without a weapon.

Yang told Blake about how she and Weiss used to date and how it ultimately ended. The two girls had been friends for a very long time and developed feelings for each other before they knew it. Due to their popular statuses in school, they tried to keep it on the down low, but that eventually drove Weiss insane. Yang didn't divulge much deeper than that, but she did conclude that the two continued to be friends since their inevitable break up. Yang seemed rather nonchalant about it now since she even compared her and Weiss with the same compatibility as "fire and ice".

But, something felt off about Yang's rants. "What about your mom?"

Yang visibly stiffened. Her stone hard stare faced the ground in shame. "She and I… were never really close."

"Why not?" Blake prodded, thinking she finally found the reason behind Yang's behavior.

"She... was never really… 'around'. She was never abusive or anything. She'd just come home, give me a long cold glare, and walk off to see my dad. She never paid me any mind and all she ever talked about was work. I did whatever it took to get her to notice me; showing off new moves I was working on with dad, my sports achievements, whatever. Nothing got to her."

"You've been talking about her in the past tense."

"Huh?"

"Yang, is your mom-?" Blake struggled to find the words.

"Dead? Yeah." Yang nodded. "She was killed… in the line of duty. She was a huntress. Her title was the Dark Raven, or something like that. Honestly, she's the reason why I hate the Hunting Corps. That's why I can't stand that little Rose brat. How she can have respect for such a poisonous group when they keep people away from their families for so long is beyond me. If my mom never became a huntress maybe she… maybe she'd…"

"Yang." Blake said softly. She stood up from the swing and knelt in front of Yang's now tearful face. She caressed the blonde's cheeks, wiping away the falling drops sliding down her face with her thumb. Blake wanted to argue that not all huntsmen and huntresses acted as Yang's mother did, but she bit her tongue, not wanting to use Ruby and her father as an example. Yang already displayed hostility towards the girl. She didn't want to make it worse.

Yang felt slim arms wrap around her in a gentle yet firm squeeze. Blake held onto her tightly as Yang's eyes widened in befuddlement, flabbergasted by the physical contact.

Why? Why was she…? Blake didn't know. Yang didn't know. They just were.

They were hugging.

And not one of those phony pity hugs. This one held weight to it. This one was real. This one was a genuine sympathetic hug.

"I'm sorry, Yang…" Blake choked out. "I'm so sorry… You didn't deserve to go through that. No one does."

"Blake, I…" Yang honestly had no idea how to react. Whenever she was in the ring, it was easy. She'd wait for her opponent to make a move and then counter. It was an easy action to reaction strategy. But here, here she didn't know how to react. And Blake knew that.

Yang had very little experience in the emotional department. Whatever worked in sports didn't work here. There were no rules. No regulations. Just complicated feelings that made no sense.

But… Yang did not protest the contact with her former victim. In fact, she rather liked it. It felt warm. It felt comforting. Yang felt disappointed when the new found warmth left as quickly as it came.

Amber met lilac.

"Blake, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all the shit I put you through. All the way back from freshman year to now. I'm so sorry."

Her voice was chiseled with regret. Blake knew.

"I can't say I forgive you right away…"

Yang's eyes widened, but closed in acceptance. "I understand…"

"But that doesn't mean I won't give you a chance."

"Huh?"

"Yang, you'd be surprised how much you can learn about someone when you would just give them a chance." Blake smiled, noting how much different she had become over the course of a couple of weeks. "I want to know the real you. You told me so much about yourself just now. If you can trust me with that, then surely you aren't beyond redemption."

Yang continued gaping at the raven-haired girl until she broke out into a soft chuckle. "Are you sure? I don't know if you'd think the 'real me' would be all that interesting."

"Try me." Blake smirked.

"If you really want to, I can't stop you." Yang sighed. "But let's do that some other time. It's almost midnight."

Yang almost laughed at how much Blake's eyes bulged out. She frantically checked the time on her phone and groaned. Calling for her playful cat, Blake almost broke out into a sprint with Gambol wrapped in her arms.

"Hey Blake?" Yang interrupted. Blake paused, glancing at the blonde. "Thanks for tonight. I was having a pretty crummy day."

"It was my pleasure." Blake waved goodbye one last time.

* * *

Monday.

Not exactly a day that was synonymous with relaxation, but something felt invigorating to Blake. The sun was shining, she was wide awake, and the first few classes of the day flew by without a hitch. Before she knew it, it was already time for lunch.

Blake quickly packed her things and adjusted her glasses. Before she could even leave her desk, a rough arm made its way around her shoulders. Blake spun to the arm's source, meeting a grinning Yang.

"Heya, Blakey! How you doing today?"

"Um… I'm fine, thank you…" Blake's eyes traced to her red companion's. What she found was a face of utter confusion and small ounces of disgust.

Before the younger girl could rush up to save her friend, something in Blake's eyes pleaded Ruby to stop her advance. Yang didn't seem to take notice of the exchange at all.

"So… What say you come join me and Weiss out for lunch today? My treat." Blake hadn't even seen the alabaster-haired girl standing next to the blonde.

"A-Are you sure? I wouldn't want to intrude or anything." Blake began to blush at the close contact when Yang pulled her closer.

"It's my way of saying thanks. You really made my weekend. That, and Weiss is quite the prude when you're alone with her."

"Trust me," Weiss glared at the blonde, "she rarely ever pays for our outings. Count yourself lucky."

"Yeah, c'mon!" Yang's hand interlocked with Blake's and she dragged the poor raven-haired girl out of the classroom. "There's always space in my car!"

"Car?!" Weiss squeaked. "Whenever we went out for lunch, you made me ride that confounded bike of yours! Why bring your car now?!"

"Silly Weiss," Yang playfully bopped the shorter girl's nose. "You know Bumblebee can't fit more than two people."

Weiss sighed before making a quick glance at Ruby, who was still astonished at what she was witnessing. "Fine. Anything to get me away from the atrocious gunk they call food here."

"Alright, that settles it! Come on, everyone. Chop chop! We don't have all day!"

Blake could barely notice, but she saw something from Yang's face. A smirk. And a mocking stuck out tongue. At a certain someone. A certain friend of Blake's.

Ruby's face scrunched up in seething anger. Blake could even see anime veins popping from her forehead.

Blake mouthed a quick "I'm sorry" before she was dragged out of the classroom. She knew then that if she was going to be friends with both Ruby and Yang, she needed to sever the animosity that lingered between the two.

This probably won't end well.

* * *

 **And thus ends the "Beautiful Beginnings" arc, though it probably was anything but. I honestly felt that the events leading to the car crash felt a bit weak, but hey, it worked. Especially for someone who doesn't have a beta reader. And thank god, Weiss finally has lines after three chapters.**

 **So yeah, I wanted to explore a bit of Yang's back story here since it will lead into the next arc. Trust me, she's not a bully character solely for being a bully. And for some reason, I thought adding in Freezerburn as a past relationship would be a fun idea to implement and it sorta mirrors the current Ladybug friendship going on. I have bit of a love/hate relationship with this particular ship since I don't really like it but I like its dynamic and I have a couple plans to make use of it in the future. And we finally get some Bumblebee development too! That's pretty cool.**

 **So yeah, as I said before, I will most likely not update next Wednesday since things have been hectic lately. I'd like to keep an entire chapter in reserve before I start another and so far, I don't have that luxury.**

 **Next time, we'll be exploring and developing Ruby and Yang's relationship! Yay! Please leave a review if you can and thanks for reading!**


	4. Uncharted Territory

**Finally got around to finishing this, so thanks for being patient guys! This chapter sorta put me in a rut since it's all build up, but hey, I'm not perfect. On the bright side, that just means this arc is much longer than i anticipated. This arc as well as the previous arc were only meant to be two chapters long but this one is sizing to be three.**

 **Also, to the guest reviewer who complained about me giving Blake a lot of attention, she's kinda a main character and I did say I was moving on to the next arc in my author's note so...**

 **EDIT: I removed two specific paragraphs for a better story flow. They're points that I will touch and elaborate on in the future, but I've noticed, thanks to a helpful reviewer, how obtrusive they are when telling the chapter's actual story.**

* * *

04\. Uncharted Territory (Yang)

Sweat trailed down her body, awaiting her opponent's next move. With both fists in front, she took on a defensive stance. Her legs were in constant movement. She bounced back and forth while staying in the same spot to keep up her momentum.

Her opponent, Cardin Winchester, went for multiple jabs.

Yang anticipated the move, blocking strike after strike. Cardin was good, but he was reckless. During their sparring sessions, she would always take advantage of his offense over defense mentality. With every opening the red head provided, Yang would counter with her own jabs.

Dodge, block, punch. Dodge, block, punch. Yang had sparred against Cardin for so long that he has become predictable over time. She employed a specific fighting style against him that was not far off from a well-rehearsed routine dance she was used to seeing Weiss do.

 _I think played with him enough._ Yang shortened the distance between herself and her opponent, baiting him once more. Cardin, disorientated from the various hits he had taken earlier, attempted to take the opportunity presented to him. With a powerful shout, his fist flew forward as if it was fired from a cannon.

Yang pulled all her weight downward, crouching to perform a slip counter. Taking advantage of her lower position, Yang smirked and shot her fist upward for the final blow.

The uppercut nearly sent Cardin flying. Fortunately for him, the gut punching strike was only enough to send him lying on his back.

"And Yang wins again!" Mr. Port, or rather here he's known as Coach Peter, announced. "You might want to vary your approach options a bit more, Cardin. Yang was able to read your movements with far too much ease."

A thumbs up raised from the ground and a mumble of agreement followed it, "Got it, Coach."

With several tired pants, Yang exited the makeshift ring and grabbed a small towel piled with her duffel bag. She wiped off the excess sweat from her forehead and gulped down nearly the entire contents of her water bottle, the chilled beverage instantly cooling her down.

Her eyes wandered around the training room. Most of the other matches were still ongoing, but it had already been a couple hours since school ended. Yang gathered that it wouldn't be too long before everyone finished for the day and left.

In fact, it was time for her to go. After addressing her coach, Yang slipped into the locker room, had a quick shower, and changed into her regular clothes. Outside, she saw a certain alabaster-haired girl waiting for her.

"Yo Weiss," the blonde waved her hand to catch her friend's attention. "How long have you been here?"

"I just arrived, actually." Weiss replied.

"What? No fancy limo to pick you up today? Or were you just waiting for lil' old me?" Yang teased with a big grin. Ever since their break up, Yang never really thought about her old relationship with Weiss much. It wasn't until she had that talk with Blake that she had really remembered and now she used it as a joking mechanism against the young heiress.

Weiss groaned, fully aware of Yang's poor attempt at playful flirting. "Don't be absurd, you oaf. I don't need a ride home every time you have practice. Besides, as ridiculous as it sounds, I actually enjoy walking home with you, assuming you didn't bring that accursed bike of yours."

Yang feigned surprise and fanned herself akin to a shy blushing fangirl. "Oh dear me. _The_ Weiss Schnee says she actually enjoys my company! I-I don't know what to say!"

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a heavy sigh. "Why do I even bother?"

"Aww, come on Weiss! I'm just joking." Yang bellowed as she smacked Weiss on the back. The heiress in turn made an audible "oof" before glaring at the blonde.

"Yeah, whatever." Weiss grumbled. They both left the gym, Yang with her standard grin and Weiss with her cool and collected expression.

Their conversation covered their usual topics: classes, homework, and… whatever Yang felt like talking about. However, one particular topic came to Weiss's mind.

"So… I've notice you and that Belladonna girl have been spending a lot of time with each other lately."

"Oh Blake? Oh yeah, she's great! Why do you ask?" Yang smirked, starting to get an idea where Weiss was going with her question. "Don't tell me, you're jealous?"

"W-What?! No!" Weiss answered, flustered. As Yang guffawed, Weiss wondered why she always kept hanging around with her insufferable companion. They both were sure it had nothing to do with their past relationship, but it still boggled her mind why they hung out in the first place.

"Don't get your panties in a twist, princess." Weiss scoffed at her nickname. "We're fine. Great, actually. She got me into this really good book and she actually helps me with my homework, unlike a certain someone."

"You? Voluntarily reading a book? Get real. And what's _that_ supposed to mean?!"

Ignoring Weiss's comments, Yang continued. "She's really cool when you get to know her. I honestly don't know why she's not that popular. The whole shy, nerdy girl schtick? Guys eat that sort of stuff up. You know, hanging out with her really made me realize how cute she is."

"That's hardly an appropriate topic to talk to me about, but whatever." Weiss sighed. "And what about that girl she's always with? That… Ruby girl."

Yang's expression contorted to a scowl after hearing the younger girl's name. "Blake always tries to make time for her. Every damn time we have lunch or hang out after school, she's making plans with her for the weekend. I don't know what she sees in her."

"Sounds to me _you're_ the one who's jealous." Weiss mockingly smiled.

Yang scoffed, dismissing even the thought that she'd envy that _Rose_ girl. "As if. It's fine though. The more she spends time with me, the less she'll be with her. It's a win-win. Why do you ask, anyway?"

"Huh? Oh… no reason." Weiss avoided eye contact with Yang, an action that stood out to her. As long as she knew her, Weiss always spoke her mind and rarely ever kept secrets. Especially from her. "I was just worried you were getting into more trouble than you usually do."

"Okay…" As much as Yang loved teasing Weiss, she knew better than to constantly press her buttons. Even she knew when to draw the line, though her previous behaviors towards her new friend Blake would say otherwise.

"So," Yang started, trying to change the subject. "Dad's been seeing this woman. I think they're really getting serious too. Saw a ring in his room and everything."

"Really?" Weiss asked, intrigued. "How long have they been dating?"

"About a year or so. He told me that they've been friends since college, when he was still dating my mom. I've met her a couple of times and she seems great. Wouldn't mind her being my stepmom."

"They've been dating a year, about to get engaged, and you've only seen her 'a couple of times'? I can't be the only one sensing something wrong here."

"Oh, well, she has a daughter at home. She said she's not the most social butterfly so she's not over that often."

"So basically, you're about to get a stepsister that you know _nothing_ about." Weiss clarified in disbelief. "I can't wait to see how _that_ turns out."

"How bad can she be?" Yang shrugged, crossing her arms around her back. "I mean, I always wanted a sister." The thought had occurred to Yang before. Being an only child of a neglectful mother made way to a specific yearning for a meaningful relationship. Luckily for her, she met a certain girl in middle school that would come to mend that.

"What? Am I not enough for you?" Weiss asked, arching her brow.

It was true. Yang and Weiss knew each other for years and practically became sisters in arms. It was strange to some that the confident, boundless fire of energy and excitement could or would form an unbreakable sisterhood with the local Ice Queen from Mantle and the few that knew were even more shocked when they found out that they were dating. Luckily, even after their break up, their sisterly bond persisted.

"Oh don't be like that, Weiss!" Yang wrapped her arm around Weiss's neck, pulling her closer. "I still love you!"

"Yeah, whatever." With that statement, an electronic beep could be heard from Weiss's pockets. Scrabbling through, she produced her cell phone, eyes widening and then scrunching up in irritation. She sighed. "My father says that he needs me for an upcoming meeting."

"Now?"

"Right now."

Yang shrugged, scratching the back of her head. "There's not much we can do about that. It must tough being the heiress of a multi-billion lien company."

"No kidding." It was a shame too. Yang had hardly spent any time with Weiss since she started befriending Blake a while back. "Ever since Winter left with that vagabond she calls her best friend to become a damn huntress, mother and father pushed all the responsibilities of heiress on me! She rarely even calls home anymore!"

"That sucks. But hey, I'll see you later. How about lunch some time?"

"You sure you don't need a ride?" Weiss asked.

"Nah," Yang rejected, "my place isn't that far from here. Catch you on the flip side."

After exchanging their farewells, Yang strolled her way back home. The summer heat never seemed to bother her even with her favorite letterman jacket on after a long training session, a trait that Weiss found to be utterly unfathomable. She supposed that it was a family trait, considering her name meant "dragon" after all.

Speaking of her family…

"I'm home!" Yang called out after slamming the door to the Xiao Long residence wide open. Her dad and she lived in a sizeable apartment, not too big, not too small, but more than enough space for two people. Not much has changed since her mother died a few years back, but that never bothered Yang. She was more of an out and about kinda girl anyway. She would much rather go out and explore than be cooped inside all day.

Of course, when two pairs of eyes met hers, and the fact that the owners of each pair were in _very_ close proximity with each other, Yang knew she interrupted a rather intimate moment. "Uh… whoops?"

"Oh, Yang!" The woman released her hold on Yang's father, Taiyang, and pulled Yang into a very tight, if not bone-crushing, hug. "Your father just proposed! I'm gonna be your stepmom!"

"Th-That's great… S-Summer…" Yang barely managed to choke out. Her dad had a really good eye for women. Summer, in the few times Yang got to know her, was a great catch in Yang's book. She never knew about her dad's dating experience, and frankly she didn't want to, but she reconsidered asking for his advice and tips.

Looking at Summer, Yang had a hard time believing that she was actually the same age as her dad. Not that her dad looked like an old geezer, but he certainly didn't look like he was still in his early thirties. Summer's shorter stature and well-kempt features would make anyone think that she was still in her twenties.

Finally realizing she was strangling her future stepdaughter, Summer put Yang down, who scrambled to regain her breath. "Haha, sorry 'bout that. Perhaps I got a little carried away."

"I'd say after that little rude entrance, she deserved it." Taiyang quipped with a huge grin on his face. Summer in response smacked his arm, to which he winced in mock pain.

"Oh shush, you." Diverting her attention back to Yang, Summer clasped her hands onto Yang's shoulder. Yang didn't mind the contact coming from her. Everything about her felt so homely.

"So Yang…"

"Don't worry, Summer. You don't have to do the whole 'I-know-I'm-not-your-mother' bullcrap. It gets old after the sixth stepmother."

"Oh ha ha, very funny." Taiyang deadpanned at the quip. Yang had often heard stories from the local housewives that her dad used to be quite the stud back in his younger days. Of course, being the daughter of the dorky nine-year-old trapped within an adult body, she never took them seriously but added them to her arsenal of possible teases she could throw in her dad's way. That and sometimes she couldn't handle having the mental image of her dad being a playboy.

Summer, however, remained unfazed. "It's perfect timing too since it happened right before the move!"

Yang had almost forgot that Summer had made plans with her dad to move in together even prior to the engagement. The dusty old apartment they were currently living had seen better days and it didn't feel as homey as it once did. The empty space created when her mother left made the apartment bleak and desolate, a shell of its former self. Even her Uncle Qrow rarely ever visited anymore. Summer had suggested that they move out somewhere else in the neighborhood that was closer to the gym Taiyang operated and to get a better feel of suburban life as opposed to a somewhat cramped apartment life. She had also suggested to move in alongside her daughter to help with any costs, but Yang had a feeling that Summer already knew that her father would propose beforehand and played it off.

Sometimes, she just underestimated this woman.

"Oh dear, I have to tell my daughter about this!" Summer, with engagement ring in hand, bolted out of the apartment akin to a child about to have playdate with their secret crush.

"Congrats again, Summer!" Yang called out, rather positive that her cry was rather futile at the speed her future stepmother was going. Looking back at her father, who looked back with arms crossed and eyebrows raised, she managed an innocent grin.

"You already knew about this, didn't you?"

"Maayyyybbeee?" Yang's grin grew, stretching to the point where she believed no picture editing software could even dream to duplicate. When her father could only return an unamused expression, Yang relented. "Okay, well, you gotta admit, hiding it with all your gym equipment wasn't the brightest idea."

Taiyang tried to rebuttal, but he knew he had no response. He was never the tidiest person around, Yang had to admit, so keeping it in a place where he checked out often was ideal. He acquainted his face with the palm of his hand and let out a sigh. Not before long, the two were sharing chuckles.

"So you ready to check out our new place?" Taiyang asked, petting the blonde's wild mane and responding with laughter when Yang smacked his hand away in mock anger.

"Hell yeah!"

Drives with her dad were, more often than not, uneventful, but never boring. Taiyang was always energetic, daring, and full of life. There was never a dull moment with him. It was no wonder to Yang how Summer managed to fall for him and vice versa. Here he was somehow taking her description of her school day and laughing like Yang told him the best joke he heard all year. It was times like these that truly made Yang wonder how the hell an exuberant man like her father ever fell in love with the distant and cold Raven Branwen.

She didn't know what to think about her mother. Raven was aloof. Perhaps far more than someone should be. She was hardly abusive, not at all. But neglectful definitely. No matter what she did, Yang was never able to capture her attention long enough for her to care. Her training in various martial arts, courtesy of her father, did no good. Her good grades (mainly thanks to Weiss's tutoring) failed to impress. And if she got into trouble in school, Raven would always be the one to pick her up (assuming she wasn't away on any of her missions) but her mother would cast her a sideways glance and apologize to the principal.

Yang wasn't certain, but somewhere in the recesses of her brain laid a certain memory. A time where her mother was far more tender and kindhearted. A time when she would never be outside her arms. A time when her mother was never far away when she hurt herself. A time when she was congratulated her for her hard work. Even if these memories weren't real, she did remember one thing. The time where all those good times ceased to exist.

The day Raven Branwen became a huntress.

From then on, her eyes became empty, her soul went as black as her hair, and the life she once had was ripped out and lost somewhere on the battlefield.

Raven Branwen ceased to be her mother.

And then when she died a few years ago, Yang had no idea how to react. Her father took it hard, becoming a reclusive hermit for quite a bit of time. Admittedly, Yang felt sad too. She somehow lost her mother not once, but twice in a single lifetime.

"We're here!"

Breaking out of her thoughts, Yang looked up out the windshield of the car. The structure was large. Two stories with beige outer walls, a maroon front door, and a garage on the side. The lawn was well-kept, having various fruit trees, flowers, some of the greenest grass she's ever seen. The driveway was large, big enough to easily fit two cars side by side, ideal for when Summer moves in. And to top it all off, a "For Sale" sign stood opposite to the mailbox had a new brand right in front of it. It read "Sold".

This was it.

This will be her new home, away from the haunting memories of Raven Branwen.

"Wow. Not bad, Dad! And here I thought I had to help you like I do your clothes!"

Taiyang scratched the back of his head, slightly embarrassed. "Yeah, Summer helped a lot in choosing the place. Got it for a really good price too. And hey, I can choose clothes on my own, thank you very much!"

"Do I have to bring up the red cowboy boots again?"

"…No." Taiyang relented in shame. _No one_ wanted to hear that story more than once.

"So… what do you think?"

The interior was quite impressive, nothing like their shabby and modest apartment home. The entrance hall was woodwork, a darkish brown color. To the immediate right, there was a rather large dining room with a table that could easily fit six people. Through there, there was a rather large kitchen with beautiful granite countertops and dark chocolate brown cabinets, topped off with a sink island in the middle and solid tile floors. The living room across was ginormous. Okay, maybe that was exaggerating a bit, but Yang had to admit she could easily fit two or three additional families there. The furniture left behind by the previous owners weren't half bad either. The couches were soft enough for a decent nap and that was more than sufficient for Yang.

"Impressive, Dad! It looks good!"

Taiyang nodded in agreement. "Sure does. We'll start moving our stuff in this weekend. You'll finally get to meet your stepsister then."

Was it just her imagination or did her dad's voice sorta trail off there?

* * *

It was moving day.

Thankfully, most of the Xiao Long property and possessions had already been boxed away, knowing that they will find a new home in the suburban neighborhood. Yang had already made a mental note to use the garage as a workshop for her bike, and she hardly drove her car so she was more than thrilled to sell it to a retailer for some extra cash. Yang wasn't going to lie to herself, she was gonna miss that old apartment, but it was time for her to start anew. Meeting Blake was the start of her evolution of self.

Blake was, in a word, exquisite. She was kind, intellectual, creative, and in short really cool. Just hanging out with her made Yang realize how much of jerk she's been for the past few years. Blake had taught her that she shouldn't let her mother rule her life, even in death. Yang's experience with the bookworm was cathartic, a word Weiss would most definitely use, in a way. In turn, Yang learned a lot about Blake. She had heard about her dream to be a novelist and artist and she certainly saw evidence that she was fully capable of achieving that. Suffice to say, Yang was thoroughly impressed.

But she had to wonder, why was Blake so enamored with Ruby Rose? No, enamored isn't the correct term. Why was she so… friendly with her? Blake wasn't the most sociable person in the world, but even a quiet girl like her must know the truth. Ruby was the sister of arguably one of the most hated men of Vale.

Argent Rose. The man who stole her cousin Altair Branwen's chances of getting into a good college. The man who took Winter Schnee's position as future CEO of the Schnee Dust Company. And worst of all, he was the man who got his teammate killed through an act of revenge. Someone who was well respected in Vale.

So why? What made Ruby so much different from her brother that she was able to make someone as sweet as Blake actually like her?

Yang shook the thoughts out of her head. She was supposed to be unpacking, not asking herself questions she could never possibly hope to understand. She made the finishing touches to her new room to distract herself. Only when she left her room did she notice some was odd.

"Dad?" Yang called, storming down the stairs. "Why are they so many rooms up here? We have more than enough space for four people and then some."

"Didn't I tell you?" Taiyang replied, climbing down the stepladder in the kitchen. "Summer has two kids: a daughter and a son who's currently out of the kingdom."

"Oh, well I guess that's fine." But then realization dawned on the younger blonde's face. "Wait… you said that Summer's last name was 'Rose', right?"

When his daughter finally caught on, Taiyang audibly gulped. He wanted to delay this as long as possible, but Summer had no idea. He knew Yang wouldn't be happy if she found out the truth. Before he could answer, the door creaked open.

"Okay dear, your new room is upstairs, right hallway, second door." Summer said.

"Got it. Thanks, mom." Another voice replied.

Yang turned her gaze to the front door while her dad slowly creeped to her side with a nervous smile. Didn't Summer have... silver eyes?

Before the fourth individual could even reach the stairs, they made eye contact. Those steel silver eyes, that black and crimson hair, there was no mistaking it.

"YOU!" The two girls stepped forward, entering Remnant's fiercest glaring contest. Silver stared down lilac, neither side relenting their side of power over the other. No further words were exchanged between the two. Only clenched teeth and barely subdued growls.

Summer could hardly contain her astonishment at the greeting but Taiyang finally spoke up in an attempt to diffuse the ticking time bomb in front of them.

"Yang… meet your future stepsister Ruby."

* * *

 **And the drama commences! So yeah, more elaboration on Yang's back story and a few revelations about Argent before his introduction. I have a few ideas on what to do next chapter, so hopefully I won't have to take another week off.**

 **I also thought of an Arkos one-shot I want to do after watching that new episode. Yikes. Thankfully, January 2nd is closer than I thought.**

 **Thanks for reading and please a review!**


	5. Red vs Yellow

**WOW, it's been forever since I've updated. Sorry guys, but with college starting up again and my much busier schedule, I don't think I can stick with my once a week update anymore. I think that much is obvious though. But thankfully, I've done a couple of revisions for my story so I have a better idea of what I want to do with my characters.**

 **ALSO, don't be turned off by the chapter name! Remember that the characters within the parentheses are the points of views explored within the chapter. The change in perspectives are easy to notice through the context clues and I used a line break every time it happens to make it a bit easier to see. Even when they're not biological sisters, there will _not_ be any Enabler today! At least not here.**

 **Wow, we finally get a chapter in Ruby's perspective and she's sharing it with Yang. Ouch.**

 **So, for the readers who read the previous chapter right when it came up, I've done a bit of revision there. I removed two specific paragraphs that I thought were unnecessary at this point in the story. They were obtrusive, so I thought I'd explore those plot points later. Thank you, uberparagon, for pointing that out to me.**

* * *

05\. Red vs Yellow (Yang/Ruby)

"…And now I need to spend the rest of my life living with her." Yang concluded, summarizing her latest revelation.

"You're… You're kidding." Weiss could barely muster up the words for a response. It had been barely twenty-four hours and Yang still couldn't believe it.

"I wish I was. Man, if word got out that _Ruby Rose_ is my stepsister I'm not sure if I could live it down, Weiss!" Yang threw up her hands in exasperation and slammed facedown onto the lunch table, earning sideways glances from surrounding students.

Something built inside her. Was it anger towards Ruby? Was it resentment towards her father for not telling her? Was it disappointment in herself that she didn't see it coming earlier? Yang couldn't tell, but it clearly bothered her.

She didn't like Ruby Rose. Though there was some aspect of her that respected that she defended Blake on their first day of school, she was still the same bratty kid that everyone, even the kids who stood at the apex of the social food chain, was afraid of. Often times, there were reports of Ruby hanging out in sketchy places at night and dealing with shady people. And now she will legally be bounded to her as her sister in a few months' time.

If that wasn't enough, there was also the case of her brother. Argent Rose was not a man to be involved with. Many of the local college graduate students who knew him in high school did not hold a high opinion of him and he was known to be banned from many of the local establishments in Vale. Even the calm and collected Lie Ren didn't think highly of the huntsman. However, one thing absolutely drove the nail in the coffin.

Weiss Schnee, her best friend, despised Argent Rose.

"Never mind Ruby!" Weiss hissed. "You're gonna be the sister of the most hated man of Vale! Thanks to that roach, I can barely hold down a conversation with my sister!"

"Ugh, please Weiss, don't remind me. I honestly don't know how it happened! Summer just seemed like a really nice person, you know? How she gave birth to those two wild animals is beyond me!"

* * *

Ruby groaned into her peanut butter and jelly sandwich, not bothering to even take a bite of the soft and creamy delicacy. Recent events stole her appetite and made it disappear. And unlike Uncle Qrow's cheesy magic tricks, she didn't think that she would be able to pull it out of her ear so easily. That, and the sandwich was actually quite comfortable to lay on compared to the cold tabletops.

"Are you okay, Ruby?" Blake asked, looking up from her sketchbook. "Is this about Yang?"

"Yes, it's about Yang!" Ruby exclaimed, arms and head up in disbelief. "The past weekend was a nightmare living with her! Did you know I couldn't even set up my brother's new room without some backhanded insult? How do you put up with her, Blake?"

Blake sighed and decided to finish up her sketch another time. Ruby knew Blake meant well and she was completely fine with her spending time with Yang for the past few weeks after a couple of explanations. Plus, it wasn't like Blake abandoned her. They still hung out like they normally did.

"You know, she's not that bad. Yang has been nothing but trusting to me since we spoke a while back and she has gotten better."

"Yeah, but only to you and just about everyone else at Beacon but me." Ruby grumbled. "I'm glad you took the time to change her, Blake, but she's still just as big of a jerk as ever! It's like we're in the middle of Blood Gulch all over again!"

"Then why don't you two try to find some common ground?" Blake asked, ignoring the obvious reference that went over her head. "Whatever she's mad about, talk to her about it. Apologize if it's something you could easily fix."

Plopping her face back into her PB&J, Ruby groaned once more, and this time with louder volume. "Trust me, I've tried. Whatever it is, she clearly doesn't want to talk about it."

Blake frowned. In her short time with the boisterous blonde, never had it occurred to her that there would be a subject she wouldn't talk about. "Any idea what it could be?"

"I dunno. She mentioned something about Weiss hating me or my brother or whatever. Not that I'm surprised. Not many people like talking about, much less get along with, the 'infamous Rose siblings'." Ruby smiled bitterly.

She hated the rumors that flew about her and her brother. But like many people her age, she couldn't convince the populace to think otherwise and of course Argent was usually out of the kingdom doing huntsman work, not allowing any time to defend himself or his choices.

Argent, however, cared little for the rumors about himself. Every time he came back from his missions, he'd ignore them and go straight home to spend time with Ruby and their mother. However, he was much too sensitive to the rumors about Ruby. He nearly broke a guy's arm for badmouthing her. Ruby didn't know who that man was, but she almost felt sorry for his twisted limb.

Luckily, their mother took the least amount of damage from the Rose family rumors. Summer was far too much of a bright spirit for anyone to doubt. Most even forgot that Summer was even related to them in the first place.

"I guess you really can't change that, huh?" Blake stated sympathetically.

"Nope," Ruby replied, popping her lips in emphasis. "I dunno, Blake. Like, after seeing her around you, I really want to get along with Yang. For you, Tai, and my mom. Really I do. But if she keeps going with this, we're never getting anywhere."

"I suppose I can speak to her about it later."

Ruby perked up. "Really? That'd be awesome. Thanks, Blake."

"No problem. Can't have my two best friends slugging each other for the rest of their lives. Can you imagine the two of you both coming to me to settle those fights? No thank you."

The two girls laughed, the atmosphere instantly becoming lighter to Ruby.

She picked up her face-shaped sandwich and finally took her first bite out of it.

Maybe having Yang as a sister wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

Or maybe not.

The rest of the school day flew by with no trouble between the two future stepsisters. That is, until they both bumped into each other in the middle of the hallway on the way out from class.

Two girls, one of red and the other of yellow, scowled at each other, neither relenting their glare. Their two companions, one of black and the other of white, awkwardly watch as the event unfold.

If one could even call it that.

"Watch where you're going, Rose." Yang growled, her violet eyes seemingly turning a flaming red.

"Whatever," Ruby deadpanned. "Not like I had much choice. Your hair flies all over the damn place, I can't see where I'm going."

Yang grabbed a smirking Ruby by her shirt and pulled her up to her eye level. "Why you little-!"

"Girls!"

Four sets of eyes turned their gaze to the source of the voice. Naturally, just when Yang was about to pull something, the assistant principal nearly witnessed it. And if her frown was any indication, she was not amused.

"Ms. Xiao Long, put her down. Now."

"Y-Yes, ma'am." Yang stuttered, carefully putting Ruby down back on her feet.

"Now, I don't know what troubles you and Ms. Rose have at home, and nor do I care, but I will not tolerate this sort of behavior on school grounds. Whether it be during school hours or otherwise. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, ma'am…" Ruby and Yang both mumbled.

"I can't hear you!"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Ruby and Yang were both grateful that the other students had already left or were attending their extracurricular activities or else their apologies would get increasingly more embarrassing by tenfold.

The assistant principal nodded, leaving the four girls to their devices. As she left, the atmosphere began to clear, making it easier to breathe.

"Why that woman isn't a gym coach is beyond me."

"For once, I think we agree on something."

Weiss cleared her throat, capturing the attentions of the other three girls. The white-haired heiress turned her attention to the blonde boxer and grabbed her arm.

"Come on, Yang. You'll be late for practice and I don't want you to be the reason why I'm late to my rehearsal again."

"Okay, okay. I got it, Princess. Geez. See you later, Blakey!" And of course, in natural Yang Xiao Long fashion, she stuck her tongue at Ruby.

Before the two could leave, Ruby took one last gaze at the two – more at Weiss than anything – completely ignoring Yang's rude gesture. Ruby knew she was frustrated. If one were to ask her, she could not provide an explanation for it.

"Hang on, Weiss!" She firmly grabbed onto Weiss's wrist as if on reflex.

The three other girls looked back at the crimsonette that called for the heiress. They stared at Ruby with raised eyebrows and questionable looks.

Ruby somehow looked… different.

Her usual nonchalant, somewhat abrasive nature was replaced with a shy girl who could barely look up at her mark. There was something that bothered her; that much was obvious. Ruby could tell that Blake and Yang looked the most confused. Never once had she ever interacted with the Schnee heiress.

Weiss's eyes narrowed at the younger girl, a surprised blue turning to an icy glare. "What is it?"

Ruby froze. She honestly didn't think she'd get this far and Weiss easily conveyed that she didn't have time for her distractions. She had to pick her next words carefully.

"Do you remember…?" Ruby droned. So much for picking her words carefully.

"Remember what?" Weiss almost spat, impatience clear.

"Do you remember…?" Ruby glanced over Weiss's shoulder, catching an impetuous Yang with her arms crossed and foot tapping in annoyance. "You know what? Never mind. It's… It's not important."

With that, Ruby turned her eyes away, releasing her grip on the alabaster-haired girl and stared at the tiling of the floor.

Weiss let out an irritated sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Thank you for wasting my time, you dolt. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm late."

The white and yellow duo left, leaving Blake confused and Ruby slightly stunned.

Unbeknownst to either party, Blake and Yang turned to their respective partners, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Weiss silently mumbled, giving Yang not even the vaguest of hints of the events that just occurred. Ruby, on the other hand, had the corners of her mouth pointed slightly upward, holding traces of a faint smile.

"What was that about?" Blake asked.

"Oh, nothing." Ruby said, stuffing her hands in her pockets and walking away.

* * *

"…You ate… the last slice of cake…?"

"Yeah, so? S'not like it had your name on it or anything."

"It had strawberries! Of course it was mine!"

"Since when did you get to monopolize strawberry cakes?!"

Ruby slammed the refrigerator door, marched to the living room, and glared at the lazily dressed girl lying down on the couch. The blonde was shifting through the television channels, either not knowing or not caring that the redhead was struggling to strangle her to oblivion.

 _No one_ touched her strawberry cake.

But before Ruby could make herself sisterless before having an actual sister, there was a ring at the door.

Summer, who wanted to avoid the fight as much as possible, dashed towards the front door. Taking it upon herself, she opened it and revealed a rather burly, muscular man with graying black spiky hair. He wore a dark red leather coat that fell to his thighs and had various black belts over his torso. Funnily enough, he wore a regular pair of jeans to clash with his already over the top designs.

A smile graced the contours of Ruby's visage as she momentarily forgot about her devoured strawberry cake.

Only one man other than her brother and cousin had that sort of flashy fashion sense.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby cried, latching herself onto the older man's arm.

Qrow chuckled at the sight of his youngest niece grasping at him not too unlike a koala hanging from a tree branch. He stroked Ruby's head with his free hand and gave Summer a short hug.

"Heya, Rubes. You're looking good. And you too, Sum. Nice place you got here." He said, finally noticing Yang checking the commotion. "And good to see you too, Yang."

"Hey, Uncle Qrow." Yang said unenthusiastically, returning to her original position on the couch.

"Qrow, I didn't think you'd be coming back so soon. Aren't you supposed to be deployed in Mistral? If you would've called, Tai would've been here already."

"I had to come back to Vale to run some errands. Met some old colleagues too that I needed some information out of. Don't worry though, I'll be outta your hair tomorrow. I even brought a friend along." Qrow smirked.

"Oh? And who would that be?" Summer asked quizzically.

"H-Hello, Ms. Rose," a shaken voice replied. "I-I mean, Summer."

Ruby tilted herself to look past Qrow's side, finding a rather dazed Blake Belladonna who could barely stand up straight.

"Please don't tell me that her calling you by your first name is your attempt to be cool with Ruby's friends."

"Hey!" Summer retaliated. "I am totally cool!"

Ignoring the adult conversation, Ruby grabbed Blake's shoulder to steady her.

"What are you doing here, Blake?"

"Well," Blake started, trying to get her bearings together before getting to her explanation. "Qrow came to visit my parents earlier. I didn't exactly catch everything that they said but once I heard that he was your uncle, I thought I'd ask him for a lift to your place."

"Okay, first of all, he's a terror on his motorcycle. Consider yourself lucky that dizziness is all you're getting from it. Second, why did you come? At least give me a call beforehand."

"Sorry about that. I just thought," Blake came down to a whisper. "I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to talk to Yang about your… situation."

Ruby sighed in exasperation. "Please do. I nearly killed her over a slice of cake."

"Strawberry?"

"Oh yeah."

"Then I suppose I should get to work."

"Hey, Rubes!" Qrow called. "You mind working on Sleipnir for me? He's been acting up and I think he may need some adjustments."

Ruby squealed, eyes turning into stars and lips forming a wide grin. "Would I?! I'll fix him up right away! Can I-"

"No, you can't open the sword compartments." Qrow said frankly. "Not after what happened last time."

"Fine…" Ruby dragged herself up the stairs. She quickly gave Blake a wave and a look of good luck before leaving to gather her tools.

* * *

"You let the brat look after your bike but not me?" Yang asked, offended that she couldn't at least inspect her uncle's beloved motorcycle.

"Hey to you too, Firecracker."

"You know how much I've always wanted to fix up Sleipnir! Besides, unlike _her_ , I actually know my way around a bike." Yang said with venom seeping from her clenched teeth.

"Yang, please." Blake pleaded, trying to calm down her friend.

"No, Blake," Qrow interrupted. "Allow me."

Qrow sat down on an empty chair, scratched the back of his head, and stared down Yang with a cold, hard stare. The look that welled up in his red eyes almost looked… defeated. Almost as if Qrow was sympathetic to the point where he actually believed whatever happened was genuinely his fault.

"Yang, Sleipnir was a gift from Ruby's late father. It was the last project they both worked on before he passed and it means so much to her."

Qrow humorlessly laughed, seeing Yang's features contort to one of slight regret.

"You know me. I could have fixed it myself, no problem. But that's not the point. Aurum was my best friend back in college and an even better one when we trained in the Hunting Corps. Saved my skin many times over. In the end, he didn't make it. Now, all the poor girl's got in this world is her mother and a brother who's rarely ever home. I want make sure she doesn't lose anything else precious in her life. I owe her that much."

Yang's regret quickly faded in a flash, replaced with red hot rage. She shot up out of her seat and stomped her foot. Small bits of tears slid down her cheeks as she growled.

"But what about me?! I'm your niece too! In fact, I'm your real niece! Why does she get so much attention while you don't even visit me or dad anymore?!"

"Yang!" Blake held onto the blonde's arm, attempting to sit her down and relax. Alas, there was no such result.

Qrow's expression experienced hardly any change. He gestured towards Blake, signaling that she shouldn't interfere.

"Yang, I assure you, I love you just as much as I do Ruby. You're what Raven left for me and I owe it to my sister that you're safe too."

"However," Qrow frowned. "I know how much you despise my line of work. The Hunting Corps hasn't exactly been good in the public eye lately and your mother is a prime example of why you're not exactly fond of us. Seeing as I'm the director, I'm usually the target of the criticism. I thought, because of that, you wouldn't want to see me more than you have to."

Yang's stormy violet eyes slowly calmed back to her quiet lilac, realizing where he was going with his explanation. She sat back down and urged Qrow to continue.

"Unlike you, Ruby doesn't mind the criticism. She takes it on willingly because she never believes it for a second. Maybe because of her dad. Maybe because of her brother. I don't know. She said it was a secret why she kept fighting for us, but I knew she meant it."

Qrow's eyes softened, the smile on his face both sad but genuine.

"Yang, I don't blame you for thinking the worst of us huntsmen and huntresses. I can tell you right now that we're not all good people. Some of us act as barbaric mercenaries who are only concerned for the payout and others care so little for their clients that they kill them and loot their corpses. I may be the director but I'm sure as hell no leader for these corrupt mongrels. That, of course, should've been relegated to a far more upstanding individual; one who lost his life far too soon."

Qrow leaned back, looking at the ceiling contemplatively. "And of course, there's your mother. I'll be the first to tell you that she's not the most understanding of people. A royal pain in my ass since birth, I'll tell ya. But still the best sister I could have ever asked for. "

Yang looked down in shame. Qrow was a respectable man even despite his occupation. He was always kind to her, but was never soft. He never minced his words and Yang liked that about him. Even though his brutal honesty was scathing, at least it was _honest_. Yang felt bad to have ever doubted his thoughts.

But still…

"Hey, Uncle Qrow!" Ruby walked in covered with black oil and smelled of grease. She had foregone her usual hoodie and jeans and opted for a black tube top and long baggy pants. Summer followed her, albeit in a much cleaner appearance.

Blake accidentally found herself staring at Ruby's exposed skin and quickly looked away when Yang's eye twitched in annoyance.

Yeah, this brat was _totally_ going to get it.

"You left quite a beating there. A few of the key mechanisms are screwed up and I'm gonna need to get some replacement parts. What have you been doing with Sleipnir?"

"Sorry about that, Rubes." Qrow laughed, veiling the tension from the younger girl that had built up with his discussion. "You know how it is. That horse is the best combat bike around. He's bound to get beaten up every once in a while. Just take some cash outta my wallet to pay for those parts. Oh, and if you have time, drop by Junior's place and-"

"Grab those wings you really like. Got it." Ruby accepted the money and went to go change her clothes, completely oblivious to the exchanging of words that just took place.

"So what were you three talking about?" Summer asked. "I thought I heard yelling."

"Oh, it was nothing." Qrow waved his hand nonchalantly. "Hey, since we're both free now, why not give me the tour of the house, Sum? I'm probably boring these two with my old man talk."

"Um, sure." Summer's eyes flew to Yang and Blake, wondering what Qrow could have possibly talked to them about. She quickly dismissed the thought and led the man upstairs to check out the upper floors. In that time, Ruby ran past and went out the door to pick up the required parts.

* * *

"Yang," Blake shook her shoulder gently to grab the blonde's attention. "I think it's about time we talked about Ruby."

"Not you too, Blake." Yang sighed in defeat. "You know how I feel about her. She's… I dunno…"

"See? You can't even think of a good reason to dislike her. Tell me, what do you have against her?"

"Well…" Yang hesitated. Should she tell Blake? That most of the reason why she hated the short punk was primarily due to Weiss.

But this was Blake she was talking about. The same girl who helped her open up about her mom and her own personal problems.

If she couldn't trust her with this, who could she trust?

"Fine, I'll tell you." Blake nodded, her ears perking up signaling that Yang had her undivided attention. It almost amused Yang as she reminded herself that this was the same girl who could barely talk to the strangers for the past few years.

"You see, it mainly has to do with Weiss." Blake arched her eyebrow, wondering to herself how the heiress fit into the equation, but continued to listen. "It's her sister. Winter was incredibly close to her when she was younger and when I met her, she was like the older sister I've always wanted. The one I've always wanted to be. She was kind, caring, and ironically, warm. She always had Weiss's back and when we became friends, mine as well.

"But then, about a year later, all of that went away. They grew further and further apart. Nowadays, she only comes home about once a year and it's rare for her to ever call home. Weiss struggled to cope ever since. I remember seeing those vibrant eyes of hers just glow red from the heavy amounts of crying she had to go through on her own. Winter left Weiss, pushing all of responsibilities of the Schnee heiress onto her, just so she could join the Hunting Corps."

Yang had to refrain from slamming her hands on the coffee table.

"Just so she could follow Argent Rose." Yang spat.

"Ruby's… brother?" Blake asked, attempting to understand the outflow of information given to her. "Are you telling me the whole reason you hate Ruby is because of her brother?"

"Not… necessarily." Yang stopped for a moment, thinking how she should word her next sentences. "What bothers me the most is how much she idolizes her brother. She remembers the entire history of the Hunting Corps for Dust's sake and she would rather beat someone to the ground than let them get away with insulting him. I know that must be rich coming from me, but that doesn't change the fact that she's dangerous and she needs to learn her place.

"Her brother is not a good person. He stole my best friend's sister away from her and he got one of the most beloved people in Vale killed too through his shitty job!"

Yang stood up and fierce violet eyes met with startled amber as she grabbed the other girl's shoulders.

"You see, Blake? This is what I don't understand. You know this. You know that Argent Rose has done terrible things to his friends, his family, and his neighbors. You know how much his sister idolizes him. You're her friend. You should know. You asked me what I have against her. Now I ask, what do you see in her?"

"Yang…" Blake squeaked, certainly surprised how passionate her friend got on the subject of Ruby Rose.

Yang's fiery red eyes calmed back down to her silent lilac and widened. She hadn't realized how tightly she was holding onto Blake's shoulders or how scared she was making her.

Yang promised to both Blake and herself that she wouldn't make anyone feel scared of her ever again.

And she broke that promise absolutely miserably.

"B-Blake, I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-"

Yang stepped back, giving the black-haired girl room to breathe.

"I-It's alright. You meant no harm." Blake cleared her throat, quickly dismissing Yang's sudden outburst.

"Yang, Ruby… she understood me during a dark time. I never really had any friends, no one I knew ever shared my interests, and you harassing me wasn't exactly helping."

Yang looked away in shame, almost forgetting that she used to be huge jerk to someone she now called her friend. She didn't know how she and Blake managed to become like friends, but she was grateful to whatever or whoever was responsible for bringing them together like this.

"She actually inspired me to reach out to you, even though she doesn't know that yet. If it weren't for her, we wouldn't have had that conversation at the park that night."

The memories of that day came back to her. Blake going out of her way to push her uncaring ass out of the way of a speeding car that could've killed her or at least put her in critical condition. Thanks to Blake, Yang managed to get away with only a few cuts and bruises.

"That was… because of her?"

"Yup," Blake nodded. "I can't say I can justify what her brother has done, but I can at least stand up for her. So please do try to get along with her at least. Please. For me."

"I'll… try." Yang tightened her fingers together into fists.

* * *

"Geez, what a freaking hassle…"

Ruby walked out of the store, managing to pick up the parts she needed for her uncle's bike. Luckily for her, she was dealing with some new employees who didn't know her, so she managed to grab the parts she needed without getting harassed by the staff. Unfortunately, that caused a bit of miscommunication since Ruby had to go through the trouble of explaining the difference between various parts.

Thankfully, she knew the best place to relax after a hard time in the store.

"Hey, guys!" Ruby greeted. Two men with black suits and matching hats stood in front of a door of a shady building. Neon lights lit up the inside and loud music echoed from beyond the door. The two men looked towards Ruby and though it was difficult to tell through their opaque red sunglasses, she knew that they recognized her.

"Ruby! How you doing, girl?" One of the men asked.

"Things could be better, but it's not bad. I went out to grab some parts for my uncle's bike and I thought I'd stop by for a visit."

"So you're not here to drop off any new songs?" The second man inquired, a bit disappointed. "Not that the songs we currently have are bad." He quickly added.

"Nah," Ruby waved her hand, ignoring the implication. "Haven't had time to make any yet. We just finished moving in the new house and all. Hey, do you two mind letting me in?"

"Of course not. You're always welcome here." The two men smiled and unlocked the velvet rope that blocked the door, allowing Ruby entry to the club.

Thankfully, the music didn't blare as much as it usually does in the night. _Junior's_ was normally a club that was very popular during the after hours, but due to its location, it was generally considered to be part of the dangerous section of the city. During the day hours, it functioned as any regular bar.

"Hey, Rubes, over here!"

Ruby sauntered to the counter, towards the man with a dark vest over a plain white dress shirt. Unlike the other men of the club, he didn't don the red sunglasses nor did he wear a hat.

"Hey, Hei!" Ruby cheerfully greeted, chuckling at the slight pun she created.

"You never get tired of saying that, do you?"

Hei Xiong, or more infamously known as Junior, was a close family friend of Ruby's. He and her father were close drinking buddies out of college and, by proxy, a good friend to her and Argent. Despite being only sixteen, Hei had granted her and her brother lifetime access to the club so long as they never drink underage. Ruby gladly accepted the proposition as she never really enjoyed the smell of alcohol anyway.

"I'm going to keep saying that until the day I die, Hei, and there's nothing you can do to stop me." Ruby grabbed one of the empty stools and jumped onto it, giving it a bit of spin before properly facing the older man.

"I suppose I can't." Hei chuckled. "So, your usual?"

"Mhm! Oh, and add in those hot wings to go. My uncle's in town. And, by any chance, do you have any strawberry cake?"

"I'll see what I can muster up." Junior said, placing a glass of freshly poured milk in front of the redhead.

Minutes later, Hei returned with a slice of cake and a closed Styrofoam box that smelled of various spices and hot sauce.

"You're lucky that you and the twins share the same tastes. Melanie and Militiades just had their birthday recently and they left some cake here."

"Well, what can I say? We have refined tastes." Ruby elegantly placed her hand over her chest and released a mock regal air. Before she could hold the pose much longer, both she and Hei laughed.

Ruby went to grab her wallet to pay before the man stopped her. "Ruby, please don't worry about paying. It's on the house."

Ruby huffed. "Honestly, man. You really got to let me pay some time. It's not like you get that much business outside of me during the day!"

"Gee, thanks. But seriously, don't. I owe a lot to your old man and brother. Aurum knew just how to keep a guy entertained on a college boy's budget and Argent makes sure my nieces are safe on the battlefield. The least I could do is let their little princess enjoy a meal here free of charge."

"You're lucky I like this place, Hei, or I'd be paying your ass and never coming back." Ruby quipped.

After sharing a couple of laughs and recounting a few stories, Hei asked a question that Ruby would've had rather avoided.

"So I hear that you and Summer moved in with the Xiao Longs. What's that like?"

"Ugh, a nightmare. Yang is the worst possible choice I could've asked for a stepsister and I don't even want to know what it would be like when Argent comes back home."

Hei's eyes narrowed and his expression turned fierce. "You don't… need something you could use against her, do you? You know how expansive my intelligence network is. Anything you need, we can get it for you."

Ruby nearly spat out her milk hearing the supposed implication of her diction. Beating against her chest to force down the creamy beverage, she let out several coughs when she finally swallowed.

"No! Nothing like that! I'm trying to get along with her, not blackmail her!"

"Huh, really? Thought she doesn't really like you or your brother. Why the sudden change of heart?"

"I, uh, well," Ruby jumbled her words. "My friend Blake. She wants us to be friends or whatever. Thanks to her, Yang has gotten better as a person. She really only treats me differently and I don't know why."

"Maybe you two should try having a one-on-one conversation. No outside interference. Try to find something you relate to."

Ruby analyzed Hei's suggestion, finally realizing that she and Yang never really had alone time together. Someone was always there near the vicinity, whether it be Blake, Summer, Taiyang, or… Weiss.

Ruby sighed.

"I know that sigh anywhere," Hei said, claiming Ruby's empty glass and cleaning it with a wet rag. "Blake's not the only reason why you want to do this, right?"

Ruby finished off her last bite of cake, though it was not nearly as sweet as it was before.

"Yeah."

"Just remember what I said then. Try to find some middle ground. Not just for Blake, but for Tai, Summer, and Weiss too."

Ruby jumped off the stool, taking the bits of fried poultry her uncle loved so much. She strolled to the entrance with a smile on her face.

"I suppose I should."

* * *

 **Before I say anything, huge thanks to my friend Okamitaretsu for providing that whole strawberry cake debacle for me. It was huge help despite not really being a big scene in itself. Writing Ruby and Yang as opposing forces is really hard considering how close they are in canon. But anyway, they have a really good fanfiction in The Crimson Rose, which if you're a fan of superheroes and good old dorky Ruby, I say definitely check it out. Give my buddy some more inspiration because I'm also awaiting the next chapter there.**

 **So with that out of the way, we finally get our first White Rose interaction! Though it's pretty obvious what I'm going to do with them, it's nice to finally have them talk to each other for once. Just a bit longer before I start Weiss's arc.**

 **Thank you for reading this longer than usual chapter and please leave a review! Until next time!**


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